


Naruto Uchiha

by Trace_Carter



Category: Naruto
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-07
Updated: 2019-02-18
Packaged: 2019-04-19 14:25:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 37
Words: 65,859
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14239212
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Trace_Carter/pseuds/Trace_Carter
Summary: What if Naruto wasn't left to fend for himself upon the death of his family. What if the Uchiha Clan decided to take in the son of the Fourth Hokage and his wife and raised him as one of their own. How would Naruto's influence help Sasuke and how will this change impact the series as we know it? spoilers if you haven't read/watched past chapter 402/episode 141 of shippuden.





	1. How it Began

In the village Kohohagakure, things were in chaos. The reason for this was that the Kyuubi no Kistune was attacking the village. Normally, the Kyubbi would be sealed within a human known as a Jinchuuriki, but a mysterious masked man had taken advantage of the Jinchuuriki going into labor and had ripped the Kyuubi from the seal and set him upon the village.

Normally the Kyuubi wouldn't dream of attacking the village and was actually on good terms with the person he was sealed with, but the masked man placed him under a powerful Genjutsu and sent him on a rampage. Now, the Fourth Hokage, Minato Namikaze, and his wife, Kushina Uzumaki were at the outskirts of the village, having managed to contain the beast and were preparing to seal it away. Minato made a string of hand-signs and a complex sealing array appeared around him and Kushina.

"Kushina," said Minato, "I'm going to have to use the Shiki Fūjin to seal away the Kyuubi's Yin Chakra while I seal the Yang chakra in myself."

"Minato," said Kushina, "please think about this. Using that jutsu would cost you your soul."

"It's the only way," said Minato, "I'll seal him in our son, Naruto to protect the village. I can seal some of our chakra into him as well to give him a message when he's older."

"…Alright," said Kushina, "but if you're going to seal him away, then let me help. With my clan's techniques, his entire being can be sealed away."

"Alright," said Minato, "let's begin."

As Minato set up the seal, Kushina used her ability to create Chakra Chains to hold the Kyuubi in place. Minato then placed their son on a raised pedestal in the center of the array. Kushina made several hand-signs and the sealing array for the changed and gained several added layers to the sealing formula.

"Ready, Minato-kun," said Kushina, "please hurry."

"Right," said Minato as he made several seals with his hands, " _Uzumaki Style Fūinjutsu: Ten Trigrams Supreme Seal!_ "

" **NO!** " roared the Kyuubi in defiance, " **I will not be subdued!** "

The Nine-tailed fox lunged forward, aiming to impale the infant on the stand with a claw, but his attack was stopped when Minato and Kushina moved into the path, given strength by their desire to protect their only child.

"Na-Naruto," gasped Kushina as she held the massive claw back with her body as it impaled her and Minato. She could feel her life slipping away, so she wanted to say one last thing, "be strong. Your life will be hard, but you are the son of the Yellow Flash and the Red Hot Habanero. Grow up strong and become a fine man. I love you, my sochi."

"Naruto," said Minato as he prepared complete the sealing and seal a fragment of his and Kushina's chakra into him, "I hope you can forgive me for this one day. I hope you live a good life, and always know, you are my greatest joy and treasure."

With a mighty roar of defiance, the seal sucked the Kyuubi into the body of the infant Naruto, marking his stomach with the Ten Trigrams seal. With the Kyuubi gone, Minato and Kushina fell to the ground as the last of their energy faded and their souls passed on into the Pure Land. Moments later Hiruzen Sarutobi and several ANBU arrived on the scene, witnessing the remains of the Kyuubi's sealing. Solemnly, picking up the crying infant, Hiruzen headed to summon the council for an emergency meeting while the ANBU took the bodies to a more secure location for their funeral preparations.

xXsceneXx

"Hiruzen," said Danzo as the former Third Hokage walked into the Council Chambers, "why have you summoned us at this time? And where is the Yondaime?"

"The Yondime is dead," said Hiruzen solemnly, "he gave his life to defeat the Kyuubi and seal it away in his own child."

Hiruzen held up the now sleeping form of Naruto, "This child is the savior of our village. He is the only thing keeping the Kyuubi from destroying us all."

The chamber was silent for a moment before a voice from the Civilian side yelled out.

"So the demon is now in the body of that child? Then lets kill him and be rid of the demon forever!"

Shouts of agreement cried out from the rest of the Civilian side if the Council, but Hiruzen shut them all up with a blast of Killing Intent.

"SILENCE!" roared the old monkey, "I will not have you speaking this way about this child! In the absence of Minato, I will be taking my old title as Third Hokage, and I hereby place a law that places the truth about this child's condition as an S Ranked secret. Anyone that speaks of it will be executed! This child is not the demon. He is the savior protecting us all from the demon."

The council was silent, but even an untrained eye could see the hated glares that were being leveled at the infant in Sarutobi's arms.

"So," said Kano Shinji, a portly shopkeeper on the Civilian Council, "what are we to do with it? Put it in an orphanage with other children?"

Hiruzen glared at the man, but couldn't do much, as he had not really broken his law despite his thinly veiled insults to Naruto.

"That will not be necessary," said a firm voice from the Shinobi side of the Council.

The people gathered turned and saw that Fugaku Uchiha had risen to his feet to address the group, "My wife was close to the boy's parents. I'm sure she would love to take him in."

"Uchiha-sama," said one of the female Civilian Councilmembers, a restaurant owner by the name of Misha Konota, "are you sure about this decision?"

"I am quite sure," said Fugaku coldly, "unless you are implying that my thinking might be flawed in some way?"

The Councilmember paled. The way that Fugaku's response was given, any objection to his decision would be an insult to him, and she didn't want the wrath of the leader of Konoha's Military Police Force turned on her.

"N-never mind," said Misha as she backed down, "forgive my objection."

"If there is nothing else," said Hiruzen, "this meeting is over. Uchiha-san, if you would remain behind, we will finalize the details about the adoption."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama," said Fugaku.

With that, the Shinobi and Civilians filed out of the council chamber, leaving only Fugaku and Hiruzen.

"Uchiha-san," said Hiruzen, "while my question lacks the insult that the Civilian Council had, I must ask, are you certain about this? The child is a Jinchuuriki. The people will likely see him as a pariah and the demon reborn. The people will want to make his life a living hell."

"I am sure," said Fugaku, "the child is a hero for containing the beast within himself to protect the village. Mikoto and I shall raise him as our own alongside Itachi and little Sasuke. I will make sure that my clan treats him like the hero he is."

Hiruzen smiled at that, "Thank you, Fugaku. But I would like to keep the truth of his heritage away from Naruto until he reaches Chunin. His parents had many enemies and I would wish to protect him from them. He will have the name Uzumaki instead of Namikaze, alongside your clan name if you wish."

"In that case," said Fugaku as he took Naruto from Hiruzen's hands, "I welcome you to our family, Naruto Uzumaki Uchiha."

 


	2. Daily Life with the Uchiha

It had been several years since the Kyuubi attack. In that time, Naruto had been raised as Fugaku and Mikoto Uchiha's son alongside Sasuke and Itachi. The villagers disliked him due to his status as a Jinchuuriki, but were wary of openly expressing their hatred, due to their fear that the Uchiha police force would retaliate. Instead they settled for overcharging him and giving him the cold shoulder when they knew there weren't any Uchiha watching.

Speaking of the Uchiha, things weren't at their best. Ever since the Kyuubi attack, the villagers had had some concerns about the Sharingan's ability to control the Kyuubi, and thus had them forced to live in a compound in the corner of the village. They were watched and monitored to ensure that they would remain loyal to Konoha, and this caused tensions to rise. Sooner or later, things would go too far…

xXsceneXx

"I'll get you Nii-chan!"

"Not on your life!"

Two children were running through the Uchiha compound, training their speed and agility with a game of tag that involved using chakra to enhance their legs to jump farther and run faster. The children were quite different, one being blond with tanned skin and blue eyes, and the other having black hair and onyx eyes. Their names were Naruto and Sasuke Uchiha.

"Got you, Nii-chan!" exclaimed Naruto as he tagged Sasuke, "it's my win dattebayo!"

"It's not fair," gasped Sasuke as he caught his breath with his hands on his knees to support himself, "you're some sort of stamina freak, Naruto."

"Hahaha" laughed Naruto, "I'm just that awesome."

"Now now, Naruto-kun," said a kind voice from the side, "don't tease Sasuke-kun. Not everyone has as much chakra as you."

"Itachi-nii!" exclaimed Naruto and Sasuke as the ran over to their older brother.

"I see the two of you have been training hard," said Itachi with a smile.

"Of course!" said Sasuke, "If we're gonna surpass you one day, we need to train as hard as we can."

"Well then," said Itachi, "I'll teach the two of you something cool then."

"Awesome!" said Naruto, "Itachi-nii is going to teach us a jutsu!"

"Now, Sasuke-kun," said Itachi, "watch."

Itachi went through several hand signs before bringing his hand to his mouth, " _Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!_ "

Itachi shot several fireballs from his mouth that flew into the air and exploded.

"Amazing, Nii-chan!" said Sasuke.

"And Naruto," said Itachi, "watch carefully."

Itachi made his fingers into a cross shape, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

There was a poof of smoke and two copies of Itachi appeared next to the original.

"Aww," pouted Naruto, "you gave Sasuke a cool fire jutsu, but I just get a bunshin?"

"This isn't a mere bunshin," said Itachi, "these clones are completely solid and can relay their memories to you. Try it out."

"Fine," huffed Naruto, " _Kage Bunshin no Justu!_ "

There was a HUGE poof of smoke and when it cleared, the lawn was filled with clones of the blonde. To say that Itachi was shocked was a great understatement. He had known that Naruto's status as a Jinchuuriki and his Uzumaki heritage would grant him an immense chakra pool, but this was beyond what he had imagined.

"Did I do it right?" asked Naruto, "I tried to limit how much chakra I used, just like when I train with the bunshin."

Itachi could only stare blankly at his adopted brother as his army of clones walked around the lawn. If this was the result when he was holding back, then Naruto would have to have near Kage levels of chakra. That would explain why he had so much trouble with the basic Jutsu. Itachi had known he had large chakra stores as an Uzumaki, which was why he decided to teach him the Kage Bunshin, but this was just crazy.

"Well," said Itachi as he composed himself again, "I want you to work on chakra control exercises with your clones until you can limit your Jutsu to two clones at will. And Sasuke, I want you to try and build your reserves until you can use the jutsu twice in one sitting without draining yourself. If you do that, I'll teach you some better stuff."

"Awesome!" exclaimed Naruto as he and his clones jumped for joy.

"We'll show you, nii-chan!" said Sasuke.

"I'm sure you will," said Itachi with a smile, "now, I need to get back to work. I have a meeting with the Hokage."

After teaching Naruto how to dispel the clones, Itachi left via a Shunshin, leaving the two brothers alone.

"So," smirked Sasuke, "I got a cool jutsu, but you need to work on Chakra control."

"I can still beat you in a spar," Naruto shot back with a glare.

"Oh?" scoffed Sasuke, "Care to prove that?"

"Last I recall it was 10-8 in my favor," smirked Naruto.

"Let's see if I can't fix that," said Sasuke as he got into a Taijutsu stance.

"I'm going to enjoy my eleventh win," said Naruto as he made a cross with his fingers, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

Sasuke frowned at the army of clones that Naruto summoned. Suddenly he didn't feel so sure about his odds. Nevertheless, he charged into the fray, hoping to somehow take down the original before the copies got to him.

xXsceneXx

About 15 minutes later, the two boys were lying on the ground, sweaty and tired. Sasuke had managed to take out a good deal of Naruto's clones, but they eventually overwhelmed him and began beating him into the ground. It was at this time that Sasuke noticed that he could see the clones moving slower then before and that he could see the chakra of the clones, allowing him to tell which one was the original. Realizing that he had awakened the first stage of his Sharingan in this mismatch, Sasuke refocused his attacks, targeting the real Naruto while avoiding the clones. The result was the two of them lying on the grass, tired and sore. The fight had, surprisingly, ended in a draw.

"Haaa," laughed Naruto tiredly, "you were pretty good, Nii-chan. You finally awakened your Sharingan."

"You weren't so bad yourself," grunted Sasuke, "you were pretty good with all those clones."

"We'll both need to train more if we want to catch up to Itachi-nii," sighed Naruto.

"That's for sure," groaned Sasuke.

"Let's make a pact here and now!" said Naruto as he pulled himself to his feet, "The two of us will work hard and never stop until we surpass Itachi-nii."

"Yeah," said Sasuke as he pulled himself into a sitting position, "then I can become the Hokage!"

"Teme!" yelled Naruto, "I'm going to become Hokage!"

"Not if you can't even pass the tests at the Academy!" laughed Sasuke, "I have more chance than a dobe like you!"

"I'll get you for that!" growled Naruto as his tackled Sasuke and began to tickle him.

This was the life of the two brothers. It was a good life, but as with all good things, they must come to an end. The brothers didn't know just how close that end really was.

 

 


	3. A New Promise

Ever since that day when they made that vow, Naruto and Sasuke pushed themselves to become stronger, striving to surpass each other so that they could one day meet and surpass Itachi's level. Itachi supported their efforts, even when they challenged him to the occasional spar. He would teach them some new jutsu and if they could master the jutsu he taught them by their next meeting, he would teach them something new. Thanks to this, Naruto and Sasuke had grown in leaps and bounds, but neither could ignore the glares Naruto got whenever they walked down the street.

Little did they know, that their lives were about to change.

xXsceneXx

Naruto and Sasuke were walking home after spending the evening training with a light dinner at Ichiraku Ramen. They both were getting quite good, and Sasuke was at the top of their class in terms of grades. The two of them were just entering the Uchiha Compound when they noticed something was off.

The whole compound was too quiet when they walked in. Normally, they would be able to hear the bustle of the servants or the elders talking about clan affairs, but the whole compound was quiet as a tomb.

"Something's not right," said Sasuke as he and Naruto drew kunai and dropped into ready stances.

"Yeah," said Naruto, "let's find Kaa-san and Tou-san."

Suddenly they felt an intense, chilling presence and turned to see Itachi standing in the middle of the walkway holding a bloody sword and bearing a cold, emotionless expression on his face.

"ITACHI-NII!" yelled Naruto, "What happened here? Where is everyone?"

"You mean the clan?" asked Itachi in a cold voice, "I killed them. All of them."

"Why?" exclaimed Sasuke, "Why would you do that?"

"Simple," said Itachi as he turned his back to them, "I wanted to test my skill."

"TEME!" yelled Naruto as he made a hand seal, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

Naruto created ten clones of himself and charged his adoptive older brother. Itachi drew his sword in one quick movement and sliced through the clones, dispelling them, before punching Naruto in the gut, dropping him to the ground.

"NARUTO!" yelled out Sasuke, "Why, Nii-san?"

"You are weak, Sasuke," said Itachi as he walked toward his little brother, "you seek to stand at my level, but you lack the power to do so."

Itachi's eyes then changed from a normal Sharingan to a pinwheel design, "Until you understand hatred, you will always be weak.  _Mangekyou Sharingan!_ "

Sasuke's eyes widened as the world around him changed, and started to scream as he was thrown into hell.

xXsceneXx

Naruto had remained in a semi conscious state when all this was happening and watched as Itachi placed his Genjutsu on Sasuke. As Sasuke fell to the ground and Itachi turned to leave, Naruto saw something glistening fall from Itachi's eye.

' _Was that tears?_ ' thought Naruto, ' _Is he crying about this? Why?_ '

"Be well, my Otouto," said Itachi before disappearing in a swirl of leaves using a Shunshin.

' _What's going on?_ ' thought Naruto before he succumbed to unconsciousness and his vision went black.

xXsceneXx

Naruto found himself in a dark sewer tunnel with ankle deep water flowing through. Getting to his feet, he looked around and tried to figure out how he ended up here. Suddenly he heard a dark chuckling coming from the darkenss.

" **Well well. My host finally has decided to grace me with his presence,** " growled a deep voice.

"Who are you?" asked Naruto, "And where are we?"

" **My, what an idiot I have for a host this time,** " said the voice in a condescending tone, " **this is your mindscape, a reflection of your consciousness, as for who I am, come closer and see.** "

Naruto was curious as to what was going on, so he walked deeper into the tunnel until he saw several large bars blocking the way with two large red eyes glaring at him from the darkness beyond. The eyes moved closer to reveal that they belonged to the body of a gigantic orange fox with nine tails and humanoid arms and hands.

"What are you?" exclaimed Naruto in fear.

" **Puny human,** " growled the Fox, " **don't you remember anything about me from your history classes? Use that brain for once in your life.** "

Naruto thought back to the lessons at the academy that he had managed to retain and remembered a story told through the village about a nine-tailed fox that attacked the village and was killed by the Yondaime Hokage. Suddenly, Naruto was gripped with chilling fear as he realized what the Fox in front of him was implying and the implications of such a fact.

" **I see you figured it out, gaki,** " smirked the fox.

"Y-y-you're the Kyuubi no Kitsune!" said Naruto in horror.

" **That's right, gaki. I'm the Kyuubi, the strongest of the Bijuu!** " laughed the Kyuubi.

"But if this is my mindscape, then you're…" said Naruto, trailing off as he realized the truth.

" **That's right gaki,** " growled the Kyuubi, " **thanks to that accursed Yondaime of yours, I was sealed into your wretched body.** "

"Is that why everyone looks at me with those eyes?" muttered Naruto, "Because I'm a demon?"

" **NEVER CALL YOURSELF THAT!** " roared the Kyuubi, frightening Naruto so much that he staggered backwards and fell on his butt, " **A puny existence like you being compared to a demon?! That's beyond insulting to my kind! Someone pathetic as you couldn't be a demon in a million years! You're just the puny human that is serving as my temporary jailer. Don't ever forget that, gaki!** "

Naruto nodded frantically, not wanting to further anger this demon of destruction.

" **Tch,** " grumbled the Kyuubi, " **why did I have to be sealed in such a pathetic host?** "

"OI!" yelled Naruto as his indignation outweighed his fear, "It hasn't been great for me either! If it wasn't for you, people wouldn't look at me with such disgust, Fuzzball! You think I wanted this? If I could I would rip you out of my body myself!"

The Kyuubi was silent for a moment as he glared at Naruto, but suddenly he did something shocking. He began to laugh.

" **Hahahaha!** " laughed the Kyuubi, " **You have balls to speak that way to me, gaki. Maybe you won't be as useless of a host after all.** "

"Thanks…I think?" said Naruto.

" **Now, get out,** " said the Kyuubi, " **perhaps we'll speak again, but it's about time for you to wake up. Just think about it and you'll wake up.** "

"All right," nodded Naruto, "see you later, Kyuubi."

" **Just leave, idiot,** " growled the Kyuubi, " **let me rest in peace.** "

xXsceneXx

When Naruto opened his eyes, he found himself lying in a bed looking at the white ceiling of a room in the Konoha Hospital. Sitting up, he saw Sasuke lying in a bed next to his, still unconscious.

"Nii-san!" said Naruto before wincing at the pain he felt in his gut when he tried to move.

Luckily, his shout was enough to wake the sleeping Uchiha and he sat up quickly, looking around in surprise.

"N-Naruto?" croaked Sasuke, "Was it a dream?"

"I don't think so," said Naruto, "but why would Itachi-nii kill our family?"

"You heard him," spat Sasuke, "he wanted to test his skills so he slaughtered all off them and tortured me after beating you."

"I don't think that's true," said Naruto.

"What do you mean?" asked Sasuke, "What else could it have been?"

"I don't know," said Naruto, "but something I saw…"

"What did you see?" pressed Sasuke.

"Well," said Naruto hesitantly, "I wasn't totally out of it after Itachi dropped me with that punch. I saw him do something to you, but before he left, he said, 'be well' and he was crying."

"Why would he say that?" asked Sasuke in a confused voice.

"I don't know," said Naruto, "but I'm going to find out. Let's make another vow right here. We will train and grow until we can face our brother and beat some answers out of him."

Sasuke nodded, "Until we find out the truth, we'll keep on training and growing stronger. We'll find out the truth of that night."

And thus the ripples cast from the stone that fell in the lake began to effect what would have been. What path this will take these two brothers is unknown, but from here, they will have each other.

 


	4. Graduation and Traitors

The next few years were hard for the two brothers, but the two of them found ways to stay strong. Sasuke abandoned much of his childlike innocence and gained a stoic personality to hide the pain that he felt from his loss of his family, while Naruto took a completely opposite approach. Naruto hid his pain behind a smiling mask and an idiot persona and acted the fool in public, but both brothers trained hard and pushed themselves to be as strong as they could be so they could one day achieve their goals. Thanks to things they had learned from Itachi prior to his betrayal, the two of them had begun planning things so they would be sorted into the same Genin Team. They knew that the top student would be placed on the team of the worst student to balance things out, so they decided to fill those roles. After much discussion (and more than a few brawls) they decided that Sasuke would work toward the spot of Rookie of the Year, while Naruto would train in secret and pretend to be the dead-last so he could be placed with his brother. Now, they would finally see if their planning would be successful, as today was the day that they would graduate and be sorted into their GeninTeams.

xXsceneXx

"Alright class, settle down," said Iruka Umino as he walked into the classroom. Seeing that the class was still playing around, he decided to use his patented Big Head Jutsu™, " **SETTLE DOWN!** "

Once the class had calmed down and gotten to their seats, Iruka cleared his throat and continued, "Today is the day of the graduation exam," said Iruka, "you will be tested on basic Ninjutsu, and weapon usage along with a written exam. Mizuki will be passing out the written portion. You will have 45 minutes to finish."

Naruto glanced at Sasuke and nodded slightly, a movement that was missed by all but a certain young Hyuuga that was watching Naruto with a slight blush. The two brothers then went to their worksheets with Sasuke easily acing the written part and Naruto barely scraping by enough points to pass (written tests weren't his thing).

After handing their tests to Iruka, the students were taken outside to the Academy training field and given a set of Kunai and Shuriken to use on the practice targets. Iruka explained that they would be judged on accuracy and speed for both tools and began to read off of the scroll of names.

Sasuke glanced at Naruto and raised an eyebrow, getting a small smirk in return. Nodding slightly the two brothers focused on the rest of the tests. Once again, a certain shy Hyuuga noticed this exchange, as she had been watching the spiky blond again, but she said nothing and simply waited for her turn.

When Sasuke was called up, he pulled out his shuriken and looked at the various training dummies on the field that would serve as targets for his weapons. Flinging his shuriken out in blurs of motion, he watched as they curved through the air and embedded themselves in a single dummy after slicing through the neck areas of all the others. He then threw out his kunai at the target against the wall and filled the central bull's-eye with the bladed weapons.

Iruka congratulated him on a perfect 10/10 for both tools and called up Naruto to go next. Naruto walked up with his shuriken and threw them almost as fast as Sasuke had, but unlike his brother's, the blades each curved to embed themselves in the heads of the different dummies. Grabbing his kunai, Naruto threw them out at the target just as fast and smirked as he heard metal clang against metal. Turning around, he saw the other students, except Sasuke of course, gaping at what they had just seen. Naruto's first Kunai had embedded itself in the exact center of the bull's-eye and all of the others has slammed, point first, into the handle of the first, pushing the blade into the target even further.

"That was…impressive," said Iruka.

"But sensei," said Sakura Haruno, one of many girls who had become enamored with Sasuke's cool and collected persona, "Naruto only landed one."

"Actually," said Mizuki, "all the kunai hit the exact same spot in the center. The rest of them simply bounced off of the first."

Naruto walked back to the group and gave a barely noticeable nod to Sasuke as the rest of the group, getting a slight nod in return from his adoptive brother. After the rest of the group had taken their turns, the group headed inside one final time for the Ninjutsu portion of the exam.

"All right," said Iruka as the students found their seats, "I will call you into a separate room one at a time and you'll be judged on basic Ninjutsu techniques."

Iruka called the class in one at a time while the rest of the students waited. Naruto had a big grin on his face, while Sasuke looked uninterested, both of them keeping up appearances. Naruto watched as the other students were called into the next room to try their luck. When Naruto stood to take his turn he heard a quiet voice shyly wish him luck.

Looking back, he saw that the person that spoke was the quiet Hyuuga girl siting in the back of the class. Naruto gave her a big grin and was surprised to see her face take on a bright red hue as she looked down and played with her fingers.

' _Weird,_ ' thought Naruto as he walked into the classroom.

"Naruto," said Iruka, "let's begin the Ninjutsu exam, "first, please show us a Henge."

"Sure!" said Naruto as he made a Ram seal with his hands, " _Henge!_ "

A poof of smoke surrounded Naruto, and when it dispersed, standing in front of Iruka was an exact copy of the Sandaime Hokage right down to the last liver spot. Naruto even managed to copy the Sandaime's pipe and was smoking it in the exact same way the original did.

"Very good," said Iruka, "good accuracy and attention to detail."

Naruto changed back with a huge grin on his face, not noticing the hateful glint in Mizuki's eyes as the other sensei watched from his spot in the room.

"Next, show us a Kawarimi," said Iruka as he picked up a training kunai and threw it at Naruto.

The knife struck Naruto, but he vanished in a poof of smoke, replacing himself with a log that took the damage for him. When the smoke cleared, Naruto was seen leaning on the log with a cheeky smile on his face.

"Excellent Naruto," said Iruka as he wrote some things down, "finally, please use Bunshin no Jutsu and create at least three clones for us."

"Um, sensei," asked Naruto, "does it have to be a normal Bunshin?"

"Yes," said Mizuki, "if you can't perform the jutsu, we'll have to fail you."

"Actually," said Iruka, "there's nothing in the rules that says it has to be a standard Bunshin. If you can make three clones of any kind, then you'll pass, Naruto."

Naruto smirked, "All right then!  _Kage Bunshin no Justu!_ "

"Kage Bunshin!?" exclaimed Iruka as the room was filled with a cloud of smoke.

When the smoke cleared, Iruka and Mizuki's jaws dropped at the room was filled with copies of Naruto, all of them bearing a cheeky grin on their faces.

"I must say that I'm impressed," said Iruka, "congratulations Naruto-kun, you pass."

Iruka handed a headband to an eager Naruto and watched as he ran out the door with a fond smile. Mizuki was watching as well, but his smile was far less kind. In fact, to a trained eye, it was sinister and calculating.

xXsceneXx

After the exam, Naruto met up with Sasuke and the two of them were about to head to celebrate their graduation at a local Yakiniku shop when Mizuki called Naruto over. Promising to meet up at the shop, Naruto headed over to see what his sensei wanted.

"Ah, Naruto-kun," said Mizuki, "congratulations on passing."

"Thanks Mizuki-sensei," said Naruto, "what's up?"

"I just wanted to tell you about a special opportunity," said Mizuki, "because you were able to master the Kage Bunshin, Iruka and I agreed that you have qualified to take a secret exam to gain a field promotion to Chunin."

The sudden opportunity seemed rather convenient to Naruto, but the blond decided to play along, "Awesome! What do I have to do?"

"Simple," said Mizuki, "if you can steal the Forbidden Scroll of Seals and take it to the clearing near training ground 27, you pass. I'll be monitoring you and someone will be there to collect the scroll afterwards."

"All right!" said Naruto, "I'll meet you there-dattebayo!"

"I look forward to it," said Mizuki as the blond ran off.

xXsceneXx

"…and that's what happened," said Naruto as he finished explaining the situation to Sasuke at the restaurant.

"So," said Sasuke, "what are you going to do about it?"

"Well," said Naruto, "I was thinking of going through with it to see what sensei has planed."

"Are you serious?" deadpanned Sasuke, "Sensei's a Chunin! He'll kill you."

"What's your plan then?" huffed Naruto, "You always seem to have one."

"Well you could at least inform the Hokage so that he knows your not actually trying to commit a crime!" said an exasperated Sasuke.

"Great!" said Naruto cheerily, "Once you're done here you can do that?"

"Wait," said Sasuke, "you don't mean…"

*POOF*

Before he could finish protesting, 'Naruto' disappeared in a poof of smoke, revealing that Sasuke had been talking with Kage Bunshin while the real Naruto was probably already making the caper.

"Damnit Naruto!" yelled Sasuke as he threw down some money to pay for his meal before running off to the Hokage Tower.

xXsceneXx

Naruto was sitting in the clearing that Mizuki had mentioned when he received the memories from his clone, "Looks like it's almost time," he said to himself.

"Very good, Naruto," said Mizuki as he appeared with a Shunshin.

"Thank's Mizuki-sensei," said Naruto, "so when do I become a Chunin?"

"Just hand me the scroll and I'll promote you," said Mizuki.

"But I thought all promotions needed the Hokage's seal of approval," said Naruto, "even field promotions need a final say so. So what are you really after?"

"Clever brat," growled Mizuki as he pulled out a short sword, "but you're giving me the scroll one way or another."

Naruto smirked, "We'll see.  _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

Hundreds of Narutos filled the clearing and smirked down at Mizuki, but the Chunin just looked around and sighed, "So naïve."

As the clones descended on Mizuki, he was covered in a poof of smoke. The next instant, an explosion detonated in the midst of the clone dogpile, dispelling the army of clones that had attacked. Mizuki then jumped down from the trees and slashed Naruto across his chest, causing the Genin to scream in pain and drop the scroll.

"Better luck next time, demon brat," laughed Mizuki as he picked up the scroll.

Suddenly, he heard a hissing sound and saw that the scroll was actually a roll of paper bombs that had been lit by his exploding Kawarimi log. Before he could react, he was caught in a large explosion that tossed Naruto away from him and revealed that a kunai that the blond was carrying was actually the forbidden scroll.

"Damn brat," growled Mizuki as the smoke cleared.

He was covered in burns and cuts from the blast and was barely able to stand, but he slowly walked toward Naruto's thrashing body and raised his sword to impale the blond. But before he could, he found a kunai at his throat and several swords pointed at his vital areas.

"ANBU," said Hiruzen as he walked up, "take this man to Ibiki and Inoichi. Tell them to squeeze him dry."

The ANBU restraining Mizuki Shunshined away with their prisoner and Hiruzen picked up Naruto before rushing him to the Konoha Hospital and summoning his personal doctor to look at the blonde.

xXsceneXx

Sasuke was waiting at the Hospital with the Hokage when the doctors were treating his brother's injuries. He could tell by their grim looks they had when they walked out there was something terribly wrong and he wanted to know what had happened.

"Report!" said Hiruzen.

"Is my brother alright?" yelled Sasuke.

"We were able to stop the bleeding," said the doctor, "but the blade used to cause the wound was laced with a special poison that is reacting to the boy's chakra and rejecting all our attempts to heal him. The only way to save him is to perform a transfusion of blood while we purge the infected blood from the boy's body, but we lack enough blood in the reserves to perform the operation."

"Then use my blood!" said Sasuke, "Will you have enough if you use mine?"

"Uchiha-san," said the doctor.

"NO!" interrupted Sasuke, "He's my brother and I WON'T lose any more family!"

"Hokage-sama," protested the doctor.

"If the Sasuke-kun wants to help, then we should let him," said Hiruzen, "I won't have a child die because of the actions of a traitor."

"Very well," said the doctor as he led Sasuke into the operating room to prepare for the surgery.

Sasuke was placed on a cot near Naruto and given a Blood Pill to help him produce enough blood to donate while also avoiding death by blood loss. The doctors connected their arms with the transfusion tube and hooked Naruto up to the reserve blood packs and began the purging of the infected blood.

**To be continued…**

 


	5. A New Power

When Naruto opened his eyes, he found himself in the dark tunnel that was his mindscape. Looking around, he noticed that something was off about the dank sewer that was, for some reason, the representation of his mind. For some reason, he could see pulsing red and blue energy flowing through the pipes that lined the walls of the sewer, and the water he stood in had a faint reddish glow to it as well.

"What's going on?" said Naruto.

" **IDIOT!** " growled the Kyuubi from his cage, making Naruto jump and spin around to face it, " **That reckless stunt you tried to pull nearly got us both killed! If it wasn't for the Hokage and the ANBU you would be dead!** "

"How was I supposed to know he would fight like that?" protested Naruto.

" **He was a CHUNIN!** " roared the Kyuubi, " **He earned his rank through effort and skill! In what universe could a mere academy student beat him?! You're lucky that he underestimated you or you wouldn't have survived long enough for the ANBU to rescue you!** "

"I remember being in pain," said Naruto.

The Kyuubi huffed, " **The bastard coated his sword with a potent neurotoxin that reacted with your chakra like a parasite as it destroyed from the inside. That kind of toxin is beyond what I can heal.** "

"What happened then?" asked Naruto.

" **The doctors were able to purge the poison,**  "said the Kyuubi, " **but there were a few side effects.** "

"What do you mean?" asked Naruto.

" **Look at your reflection, gaki,** " growled the Kyuubi.

Naruto looked down at his reflection in the water at his feet and jumped at what he saw. Instead of his normal cerulean blue irises, his eyes were now purple with rings that made a ripple like design.

"What's up with my eyes?" asked Naruto.

" **Looks like you developed a doujutsu,** " said the Kyuubi.

"You mean like Sasuke-nii's Sharingan?" asked Naruto.

" **Che,** " scoffed the Kyuubi, " **the Sharingan nothing like the Rinnegan.** "

"The Rinnegan?" asked Naruto.

" **Yes,** " said the Kyuubi, " **but we'll talk more later. It's time for you to wake up, gaki.** "

xXsceneXx

Naruto opened his eyes and winced at the brightness of the room's light. Once his eyes had adjusted, he noticed that he was lying in a hospital room bed with several machines connected to him.

"Whz go non?" he slurred, not quite having the energy in him to talk.

"He's awake!" said a medic, "Inform the Hokage!"

One of the medics vanished in a Shunshin while the several others rushed to Naruto's bedside where they began to do some tests.

"How do you feel?" asked one doctor.

"Tired," groaned Naruto.

"It's to be expected," said the doctor, "you just went through a complicated procedure. You're lucky to have survived."

"So Nii-san was able to alert the Hokage," said Naruto, "where is he now?"

The doctor's face became grave and he pointed to a cot near Naruto's. Lying on the bed connected to an IV drop was Sasuke. He was rather pale and breathing shallowly, but he seemed stable and was sleeping peacefully.

"What happened?" asked Naruto, "What happened to him?"

"He saved your life, Naruto-kun," said the Hokage as he walked in, "you were infected with a poison that was resisting our attempts to cure. We needed to purge your infected blood, and your brother here provided the blood needed to keep you alive."

"Is he going to be ok?" asked Naruto.

"He will be," said Hiruzen, "but I'll need you to answer some questions. How do you feel?"

"A bit weird," said Naruto, "my eyes tingle a bit, but otherwise I'm just exhausted."

"Yes," said Hiruzen, "that's another think we wished to speak about. The procedure that saved your life had an unforeseen side effect."

"You mean my eyes?" asked Naruto, "The Rinnegan?"

"Rinnegan?" said Hiruzen in surprise.

"Yeah," said Naruto as he pulled himself upright in bed, "that's what Kyuubi called them."

"You can speak with the Kyuubi?" exclaimed Hiruzen in alarm, "Naruto-kun, you must be very careful, the Kyuubi is not to be trusted. You must never let it trick you."

"I promise to be careful, Jiji," said Naruto, "but he's never really seemed to care about making me let him out. He even told me that I'm not a demon."

"That aside," said Hiruzen, "what did it tell you about the Rinnegan?"

"Nothing really," said Naruto, "he just told me its name. Why? Is there something special about the Rinnegan, besides the fact that it's a doujutsu?"

"The answer to that is a long story that begins during the first days of the Shinobi," said Hiruzen, "the Rinnegan is said to have been the doujutsu of the founder of Ninjutsu, the Sage of Six Paths. The full abilities of this doujutsu aren't known, as it hasn't been seen for many generations, but it was said to be one of the most powerful. Naruto-kun, I will have to ask you to keep this ability a secret. There will be those that would want to take advantage of you for its power."

"Alright, Jiji," said Naruto, "but, um, how do I turn it off?"

"You might want to ask your brother," said Hiruzen, "since he has the Sharingan, he might be able to tell you how to deactivate your eyes. Now, get some rest, Naruto-kun."

Naruto nodded and lay down, letting sleep take him once more.

xXsceneXx

A few days after the two of them were released from the hospital, it was time for the Genin Team placements. Both of them knew that their dreams would ride on this moment, and hoped that they would be on the same team.

 


	6. Team Placements

It was early in the morning when the Jonin-senseis Kakashi Hatake and Kurenai Yūhi were called into the Hokage's office. The reason for the early meeting was complicated. The meeting was actually scheduled at around 10:00 the previous night, however Kakashi was known to be late to every occasion and thus arrived several hours after the appointed time, meaning the meeting was postponed until he arrived.

"Sorry for the delay," said Kakashi as he smiled behind the mask that covered the lower half of his face, "there was a lost kitten that I helped find, but when I saw it was a black cat, I took a few laps around the village so the bad luck would wear off."

The Hokage sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose, counting in his head to stave off the irritation at the tardy Jonin before looking up at the two of them.

"I've called the two of you here to speak to you about the team placements for this year," said the Hokage, "I understand that you wanted Sasuke on your team so you could help him develop his Sharingan, Kakashi?"

"That's right," said Kakashi, "the civilian council has pressured me to take Sasuke under my wing due to me having the Sharingan. Is there a problem, Hokage-sama?"

"Not exactly," said Hiruzen before turning to Kurenai, "I would like to propose a switch to both of your teams. Kurenai, you wanted Hinata on your team, but I would like to switch her to Team 7 and place Sakura Haruno on your team."

"Hokage-sama," said Kurenai, "I must protest. I've been helping Hinata for a while now and she would make the perfect addition to the tracking team I wished to form."

"I have seen Sakura's grades," said the Hokage, "she will need some work, but her chakra control is exceptional, meaning she could potentially be quite skilled in Genjutsu. And I believe Hinata would fit quite well with Sasuke and Naruto-kun, Kakashi."

"Why do you think that?" asked Kakashi with interest.

"Let's just say, Naruto-kun has a talent that will round out the group if Hinata joins," said Hiruzen.

"If you say so, Hokage-sama," said Kakashi.

"One last thing, Kakashi," said Hiruzen as the Jonin turned to leave, "try not to be this late next time."

Kakashi simply nodded and vanished in a Shunshin. Looking around at the piles of paperwork, Hiruzen sighed. How Minato got through this hell every day with enough time left over to spend with Kushina, he never knew.

xXsceneXx

Naruto and Sasuke arrived at the classroom and took their seats as the rest of the class filed in. Naruto had talked to Sasuke when they got out of the hospital and he had told him how to cut the chakra flow to his eyes, allowing him to deactivate his new doujutsu. The Kyuubi had also been rather helpful, strangely enough, teaching him some things about his new power, mainly that, with it, he could now use all five of the primary elements. When Naruto asked why he was being so forthcoming, the Kyuubi simply scoffed and stated that with this new development, Naruto had simply caught his attention and he was curious to see how he developed.

This was not the only change though. The two brothers had decided to go for a change in wardrobe to signify this new part of their lives. Naruto had opted for a pair of black pants and a black shirt with an orange stripe running down the middle and black Shinobi gloves on his hands. Sasuke chose a dark grey coat over a dark blue shirt and pants with string around his legs to keep the pants from flapping around. He also wore a black scarf and wraps on his hands and torso. The two boys were ready to be Shinobi and decided to dress to impress.

As Naruto thought about this, he heard the hammering of footsteps racing toward the classroom and looked up just in time to see Sakura and Ino race into the classroom at top speed. Upon regaining their composure, the two girls glared at each other triumphantly.

"HA! I BEAT YOU, INO-PIG!" yelled Sakura.

"Only because your huge forehead stuck out so much!" Ino shot back.

Sakura huffed before walking over to Sasuke, "Sasuke-kun, do you want to sit by me?"

"Um, Sakura-chan," said Naruto, "I'm already sitting here."

Sakura glanced at Naruto with irritation. Her parents hadn't spoken fondly of Naruto, telling her that he couldn't be trusted, but never directly insulting him out of fear of the Uchiha Police Force. After the massacre, her parents had been more vocal, telling Sakura that Naruto was dangerous and she should be wary of him.

"I'm…sorry," said Sakura, "but you spend so much time with Sasuke-kun. Maybe you could let me have some of it?"

"Sakura," said Sasuke coldly, "my  _brother_ ," he said with emphasis on the word, "was here first and honestly, I would prefer his company over yours."

Sakura froze before storming off to another seat. Once she had gone, Naruto turned toward his brother with a raised eyebrow.

"That was a bit harsh, don't you think, Nii-san?" said Naruto.

"She was just an annoying fangirl," said Sasuke, "and if she can't treat my brother well, why should I treat her any different?"

Naruto would have responded, but Iruka chose that moment to walk into the classroom, causing the students to quiet down, lest they face Iruka's patented Big Head no Jutsu.

"All right," said Iruka, "all of you here have passed the graduation exams and are ready to become Genin of Konoha. Each of you will be assigned to a team with a Jonin as a sensei. Now then. Team 1…"

As Naruto listened for his name, a young girl with short blue hair styled in a hime-cut and pale lavender eyes, watched the blond carefully. Her name was Hinata Hyuuga and she had been somewhat infatuated with Naruto ever since he had defended her against some bullies when they were younger. She hadn't gotten his name, but she recognized him when they entered the academy together.

"Team 7," said Iruka, catching Naruto and Hinata's attention, "will consist of Naruto Uzumaki Uchiha, Sasuke Uchiha, and Hinata Hyuuga. Your Jonin-sensei will be Kakashi Hatake."

Inside, Hinata was jumping for joy, though she settled for a blush and a smile on the outside. The fangirls in the class were devastated that they couldn't be with their Sasuke-kun, but there wasn't anything they could do.

"Team 8," continued Iruka, "will consist of Kiba Inuzuka, Shino Aburame, and Sakura Haruno. Your sensei will be Kurenai Yūhi."

"Ahhhh," moaned Sakura, "I'm stuck with dog breath and bug boy!"

Kiba glared at her while Akamaru growled. Shino didn't even dignify her insult with a response, but a low buzzing could be heard from his body.

"Finally," said Iruka, "Team 9 is still in circulation, so Team 10 will consist of Ino Yamanaka, Shikamaru Nara, and Choji Akimichi."

Ino groaned at her team placements but didn't make any comments. Iruka put the scroll he had been reading from in a pouch and Kurenai walked in along with a man wearing Konoha Jonin attire and smoking a cigarette. This was Asuma Sarutobi, son of the third Hokage and Jonin of Konoha. Several other Jonin accompanied them and they called their teams together.

"Team 10," said Asuma, "with me."

"Team 8," said Kurenai, "meet up at Training Ground 7."

The Jonin gathered their teams, before heading out of the room, leaving a confused Team 7 wondering where their sensei was. Eventually, out of boredom, the group began to do things to pass the time. Sasuke pulled a book on Genjutsu out of…somewhere, and began to read, Naruto practiced his chakra control by sticking various objects to his body with Chakra, and Hinata watched the brothers curiously.

Eventually, the door opened and Kakashi walked in, glancing at the group and their activities before raising an eyebrow.

"Well," said Kakashi, "my initial opinion is that you all seem rather dull."

Sasuke looked up from his book while Naruto raised an eyebrow at that comment, causing the objects he was working with to fall to the ground with several thuds when he lost focus.

"Meet me on the roof," said Kakashi before vanishing in a Shunshin.

Naruto glanced at Sasuke before looking toward Hinata, "Hinata-chan, are you able to use the Shunshin no Jutsu?"

Hinata blushed and shook her head, "N-no. I haven't learned it yet."

"No worries," said Naruto with a grin as he walked over, "I've got it covered."

Naruto picked up Hinata in a bridal carry, causing the timid girl to 'eep' and blush crimson red before hopping out the window and running up the side of the building with his Chakra. Sasuke sighed at his brother's antics and opted to simply use Shunshin to travel to the roof.

xXsceneXx

When Naruto arrived on the roof, he put down Hinata, who had surprisingly managed to not lose consciousness, and glanced around, seeing Sasuke leaning against a railing and Kakashi reading from an orange book titled Icha Icha Paradise. Deciding not to comment on their new sensei's choice in literature, Naruto stood to the side and waited for him to speak.

"Well," said Kakashi, "now that we're all here, lets try and get to know each other. How about we take turns and describe our likes, dislikes, and dreams for the future."

"Ano," said Hinata timidly, "could you go first and give us an example, sensei?"

"Alright," said Kakashi, "let's see, my name is Kakashi Hatake, I have a few likes and dislikes, and my dreams are none of your business."

The team sweatdropped at the lack of information that they had been given, but Kakashi paid it no mind and simply pointed to Naruto.

"Alright blondie, you're up," he said.

"My name is Naruto Uzumaki Uchiha," said Naruto, "I like ramen, my family, and gardening. I dislike people that can't tell a scroll from what is sealed within and the three minutes it takes for ramen to cook. My dream is to become Hokage and to become strong enough to stand by Nii-san as we work toward our goal of finding a certain person."

' _Hmmm,_ ' mused Kakashi, ' _he seems complicated. On one hand, you could say he is close to being an avenger as he seeks this 'person' out. But on the other hand, he could be rather insightful and possibly knows about the burden he carries and how to separate himself from being identified as the Kyuubi._ ' "Alright, how about you next, girlie," he said to Hinata.

"Eto, my name is Hinata Hyuuga," said Hinata nervously, "I enjoy cinnamon buns and flower pressing and…" at this she paused blushed slightly, playing with her fingers and glancing at the ground, "I dislike prejudice and having to hurt people I care about. My dream is to become clan head and to abolish the Caged Bird Seal."

' _An ambitious goal,_ ' thought Kakashi impressed, ' _at first glance, one might see her as a fangirl, but she has drive and ambition and wants to do more than fawn over a crush. We'll have to work on her shyness though._ ' "You're up last," he said pointing to Sasuke without looking up from his book.

"Hn," said Sasuke, "my name is Sasuke Uchiha. I like tomatoes and my family. I dislike fangirls and those who don't take things seriously in dangerous situations. I don't have a dream, rather an ambition to become strong and eventually confront a certain person."

' _Well,_ ' thought Kakashi, ' _that's three for three. This one acts like a typical avenger, but deep down he has a drive to get stronger and has bonds with his brother that could keep him tied to the village._ '

"Well," said Kakashi as he closed his book with a snap, "all of you seem rather interesting, but you still have a ways to go before becoming Genin. Tomorrow all of the graduates will go through a special test to weed out those that don't belong in the Shinobi forces. Out of the 27 graduates, nine will move on to become Shinobi."

"Wh-what happens to the rest of them?" asked Hinata nervously.

Kakashi fixed them with a serious look, "Anyone who doesn't pass…will go back to the academy."

Sasuke frowned at that, while Naruto simply grinned, "Then I guess we'll pass, 'cause we're gonna be Shinobi whether you like it or not!"

Kakashi raised an eyebrow before shrugging, "Try and hold onto that optimism. And by the way, I don't recommend eating breakfast tomorrow. You'll just throw it back up. Meet tomorrow at Training Ground 3 at 4:00am."

With that, Kakashi vanished in a Shunshin, leaving the Genin on the roof.

 


	7. Birth of Team 7

When the three Genin arrived at the training field the next morning, there was no sign of their sensei. They all confirmed that they were on time, and they had Hinata use her Byakugan to check the surrounding area, but Kakashi was nowhere in sight.

"Where is he?" groaned Naruto, "Don't tell me he's late again!"

"I have a feeling that that guy will be late to his own funeral," muttered Sasuke.

"M-maybe we can take advantage of this," said Hinata hesitantly, causing her two teammates to turn to her.

"What do you mean, Hinata-chan?" asked Naruto.

Hinata blushed at the attention and looked down as she answered, "W-well, since Kakashi-sensei isn't here yet, we could use the time to scout the area and set up traps."

"That sounds like a good idea," said Sasuke, "Naruto, if you could set some traps, then Hinata and I could scout the area. Considering how long we had to wait for him at the team placements, I'd assume we have at least an hour, maybe two, to work before we meet back here."

"Sounds good," said Naruto, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

Naruto created about 30 clones in the field around them, "You know what to do."

"Hai, Boss!" yelled the clones before they scattered to do their work.

Working in groups of two, the clones set up traps throughout the clearing ranging from pitfalls to barrages of shuriken and kunai. With the help of his clones, soon the whole training field was rigged with traps. Once done, the clones dispelled, transmitting their memories of where each trap was to Naruto.

While Naruto and his clones were doing this, Sasuke and Hinata moved along the perimeter of the training ground, utilizing Hinata's Byakugan to scope out the field and a significant radius around it for traps or their sensei.

Once the teammates were finished, they reunited in front of the three wooden posts that stood in the clearing of the training ground. The three of them waited there for about another hour and a half before Kakashi appeared in front of the three Genin in a swirl of leaves.

"Yo," said Kakashi casually.

"You're late," deadpanned Naruto.

"Sorry," said Kakashi as he gave the trio an eye smile, "but there was an old lady that needed help crossing the street."

Naruto just glared at him with a twitch in his eye.

"Anyways," said Kakashi, "let's begin."

Kakashi placed three wrapped bento boxes on the posts along with an alarm clock, before clipping two bells to his belt.

"Here's how this is going to go," said Kakashi, "you're going to try and grab one of these bells from by belt. Whomever fails to obtain a bell by noon, will be sent back to the academy, and will be tied to the post here while they have to watch the rest of us eat our lunch."

The three Genin's stomachs growled at this, all of them having skipped breakfast this morning due to Kakashi's suggestion the previous day, and they gazed at the bentos with longing.

"So," said Kakashi, "I recommend coming at me with the intent to kill, or you will certainly fail. We start…now!"

At his declaration, the three genin scattered and hid in the trees to plan for their fight with the Jonin. Shrugging at their actions, Kakashi reached into his pouch and pulled out his book and began to read.

xXsceneXx

Naruto, Sasuke, and Hinata came to a stop in a shaded spot in the forested area of the training ground and gathered in a huddle.

"Ok," said Naruto, "how the heck are we supposed to get those bells? If Kakashi-sensei is as tough as Itachi-nii, then we don't have a chance."

"We're going to have to pool our resources," said Sasuke, "we can't afford to lose."

"Ano," said Hinata hesitantly, "there was something I noticed?"

Both boys once again turned to her, causing her to blush and hesitate before answering, "W-well, there are three of us, right? But Kakashi-sensei only has two bells."

The trio was hesitant for a good minute before Naruto spoke up, "It can't be. Itachi-nii always said that teams were made up of at least three Shinobi and one team leader."

"Then why would he create a test that would make us fight to decide who is left behind?" asked Sasuke.

"M-maybe that's the point?" said Hinata hesitantly. The boys turned toward her, so and she steeled her nerves before elaborating, "maybe Kakashi-sensei is using this test to see if we'll turn on each other to become Shinobi?"

"That…does sound possible," said Naruto.

"But," said Sasuke, "even if that's the case, we'll still need a plan of attack if we're going to beat him."

"Anyone have any ideas?" asked Naruto.

"I might have one," said Sasuke, "Naruto, you and I will draw Kakashi's attention with our jutsu, while Hinata gets in close with her Byakugan and hits him with her Juuken. Also…"

As Sasuke finished laying out his plan, Naruto's face erupted into a shit-eating grin.

"You really think he'll fall for that?" asked Naruto, "You really have a wicked sense of humor nii-san."

"Remember," said Sasuke, "we have to actually make him see us as a threat for this to work."

"Not a problem," said Naruto, "I've been practicing some of the jutsu Itachi-nii showed us."

"I'll do what I can," said Hinata.

"Good," said Sasuke, "then let's begin phase 1."

xXsceneXx

Kakashi had to internally sigh as he turned the page of his Icha Icha novel. He had expected his students to try something by now, but it seemed that they were hesitating to take action. He could at least take solace in the fact that they were good at hiding. Suddenly, he heard the whistle of a projectile and he raised his hand to grab a flying kunai out of the air.

"I'd hoped you would be a more promising student than what your academy grades indicated," sighed Kakashi, "but it looks like there was some truth to them…Naruto-kun."

Kakashi turned around to face the blond as he stood with a kunai gripped in his hand and a confident smirk on his face.

"Get ready, Kakashi-sensei," said Naruto, "cause I'm gonna take that bell now!"

Naruto threw his kunai at Kakashi, causing the Jonin to raise his eyebrow. The Kunai wasn't even aimed properly and stabbed into the ground in front of him. The Jonin didn't have time to comment as the ground gave way under his feet to reveal a deep pit that the Jonin just barely managed to avoid falling into.

"Very tricky, Naruto-kun," said Kakashi, "but not quite…"

Kakashi wasn't able to finish that remark, as his foot caught a tripwire, causing several shuriken to be launched at him from spring loaded devices hidden under camouflage tarps and grass, forcing him to use a Kawarimi to avoid becoming a pincushion, leaving a log to take his place as the Jonin retreated into the cover of the trees.

' _While that was impressive,_ ' thought Kakashi, ' _he still attacked alone. If things continue on this path, I might have to send back a promising young genin._ '

" _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu_ " yelled out Sasuke's voice, forcing Kakashi to dodge a stream of fire that was shot at him.

' _A genin shouldn't have the chakra to use that jutsu!_ ' thought Kakashi in shock before he felt his back hit several more tripwires, ' _Crap!_ '

This time, Kakashi was forced to dodge several flying Shuriken and a large swinging log that would have knocked him for a loop if it connected, putting leaving him open for an attack from Naruto's Kage Bunshin, forcing Kakashi to Kawarimi again.

"That was a nice combo," said Kakashi, "but it will take more to beat me."

"Then let's try this!" said Naruto, "Nii-san!"

"Right!" said Sasuke as he and Naruto made hand seals, " _Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!_ "

" _Fūton: Daitoppa!_ " yelled Naruto.

Sasuke shot several small fireballs in a tight formation at the Jonin from his mouth while Naruto breathed out a powerful gale force wind that hit the fireballs and merged them together into the form of a blazing firebird that streaked toward the silver-haired Cyclops, following his movement as Sasuke controlled it with his chakra.

" _Konbijutsu: Kyōfūōtori (Combination Jutsu: Soaring Phoenix)!_ " declared Naruto proudly.

The firebird struck Kakashi, resulting in a large explosion, but when the smoke cleared, all that was there was a burnt log.

"Well," said Kakashi from behind the brothers, causing them to spin around, "you two did well, but what about your other teammate?"

"You should worry about us first!" said Naruto.

"Very well," said Kakashi as he calmly placed his book back in his pouch and reached up to his headband, "I think you've earned this."

When Kakashi moved his headband to reveal his left eye, the two boys froze in shock, for under their sensei's headband was a fully matured Sharingan eye.

"How does he have a Sharingan?" said Naruto in a shocked voice.

Sasuke didn't get a chance to answer, as Kakashi rushed at the two brothers, forcing them into defensive positions. Luckily, their use of Kawarimi and Naruto's Kage Bunshin allowed them to barely keep up with the older and more experienced Shinobi. Kakashi was preparing to quickly end this fight so he could find Hinata. The two boys had done well, but a team wasn't just made of two men. If they could not work with their third teammate, then they weren't ready to become Shinobi.

As he moved to grab the boys' hands and throw them to the ground, he felt several strikes to the tenketsu in his torso, causing him to fall to his knees, allowing the brothers to grab the bells. Looking up, he saw Sasuke drop a Genjutsu surrounding Hinata, revealing that she had been waiting in hiding before sneaking up behind him to deliver the disabling blows.

"Your plan worked, nii-san!" said Naruto, "You were great, Hinata-chan."

Kakashi chuckled as Hinata blushed bright red, "So," he said, "who here is going back to the academy?"

The three teens looked at each other before Naruto smirked and walked over to Kakashi, who was still having some trouble moving, before reaching into the Jonin's pouch and pulling out his book.

"How about a deal?" he asked, "You pass all of us, and I wont use this for Katon jutsu target practice?"

"NOOOOOO!" wailed Kakashi, "Right! You guys pass! Just give it back!"

The three Genin laughed as they moved to help their sensei up. They were now official Genin of Konoha. The sky's the limit!

 

 


	8. Elements and Atonement

That night, the Jonin sensei gathered in the Hokage's office to talk about the results of the Genin team evaluations. The meeting had actually been scheduled for the evening, but as usual, Kakashi was several hours late, causing the rest of them to have to wait for his arrival. Finally Kakashi walked in with his eye smile.

"Sorry I'm late," said Kakashi, "I helped a lady cross the street and she insisted that I stay for dinner, and I spilled some ramen on my mask so I headed home to change."

"…Right," sighed Hiruzen, "now that we are all here, let's begin this meeting. Which teams have passed the Genin exams?"

"Team 1 failed miserably," said a Jonin, "I recommend they be removed from the Shinobi program."

"Team 2 passed the test but does not understand the value of teamwork," said another Jonin, "they should be limited to D rank missions until they do."

The reports continued in this fashion, with teams 3-5 failing and being sent back to the academy, and team 6 being recommended for removal of Shinobi status altogether. Finally, it was time, for Kakashi to give Team 7's evaluation.

"Team 7," said Kakashi, "passes with flying colors. They not only understand the value of teamwork, but they have the minds to put together a plan and work together to make it work."

"Threatening your book probably helped," teased Hiruzen, causing Kurenai to glare at Kakashi for his perversion.

"Hokage-sama," said Kakashi seriously, "you know what a serious threat that was."

The two men nodded solemnly, getting sweatdrops from the rest of the room, before the Hokage moved on, "Kurenai, what is your report?"

Kurenai sighed, "Team 8 passed with some difficulty. Haruno Sakura had some issues, but she has exceptional Chakra control. With some work, she has potential in Genjutsu and could round off a tracking and stealth team."

Asuma went next, "Team 10 did well. Ino was quick to take charge and the group worked well as the successors to the InoShikaCho combo."

"Good," said Hiruzen, "all of you except Kakashi are dismissed. Report to mission assignment tomorrow."

The rest of the Jonin left the room, leaving the silver haired Jonin there with the Hokage.

"Is something wrong, Hokage-sama?" asked Kakashi.

"Kakashi," said Hiruzen, "what I am about to tell you must be kept under wraps as much as possible. If it gets out, people will target your team, dangerous people."

"Are you talking about the Kyuubi?" asked Kakashi, but the Hokage shook his head.

"This secret his implications that have the potential to be even more dangerous than the Kyuubi," said Hiruzen, "what do you know of the Sage of the Six Paths."

"I know that he was the founder of Ninjutsu and was undeniably the most powerful being in existence, his offspring becoming the Senju and Uchiha Clans, the two of the most powerful clans and the founders of our village here," said Kakashi.

"Yes," said Hiruzen, "but what must be understood is the secret behind his power. The Rinnegan. A rare and powerful Doujutsu that one of your Genin now possesses."

"Sasuke has the Rinnegan?" said Kakashi in surprise, "I can see why you'd want to keep this secret…"

"No," interrupted Hiruzen, "not Sasuke."

"The Hyuuga?" said Kakashi.

"Not her," said Hiruzen, waiting for it to dawn on the Jonin.

"…No," said Kakashi, "that's impossible!"

"It's true," said Hiruzen.

"But how did he get it?" exclaimed the Jonin, "Neither of his parents had any Doujutsu!"

"I believe it was due to the incident with the traitor Mizuki," said Hiruzen, "Naruto-kun was poisoned and Sasuke-kun donated the blood needed to save the boy. Perhaps the Uchiha blood mixed with his Uzumaki blood and created a mutation of the Sharingan."

"That's unbelievable," said Kakashi.

"This must not become public knowledge," said Hiruzen, "the reason I am telling you this, is because this talent must be nurtured and trained. I know you were asked by the counsel to train Sasuke-kun in the use of his Sharingan, but I would like you to teach Naruto as well. A known ability of the Rinnegan is the ability to use every one of the five elements, so I think Naruto would benefit from your knowledge of Jutsu just as much as Sasuke would. Add in Hinata-san to that mix, and you have a team of powerful students, each of them possessing one of the three Great Doujutsu. They have great potential. Train them well."

"I will," said Kakashi before vanishing in a swirl of leaves.

Once the Jonin had left, Hiruzen reached into his desk and pulled out an orange book identical to the one Kakashi was always seen reading. Opening the book to a certain page he began to read as a bit of blood leaked from his nose.

xXsceneXx

The next morning, Naruto woke bright and early in the apartment he shared with Sasuke and headed got dressed. Heading out of his bedroom he found Sasuke eating a bowl of Tomato soup at the table.

"Morning, Nii-san," said Naruto as he grabbed a cup of instant ramen from the cabinet and began to boil water to heat it while pouring himself a glass of orange juice.

"We're finally Shinobi," said Sasuke as he sipped his soup, "one step closer to finding our brother."

"We'll find him," said Naruto as he waited for the ramen to finish cooking, "we have trained too long and too hard for it to be for nothing."

A timer dinged and Naruto grabbed the cup of instant ramen before beginning to eat his favorite snack. The two boys finished up their breakfast before grabbing their Shinobi gear and tying on their headbands.

"So what do you think of our new sensei?" asked Naruto as he grabbed a pack of paper bombs that he kept on hand.

"He seems lazy," said Sasuke, "and a bit of a pervert."

"More than a bit," laughed Naruto, "I recognize that book of his. It's one of those Icha Icha novels."

"How do you know about that series?" asked Sasuke with a raised eyebrow.

Naruto blushed and looked away embarrassed, "…let's hurry to the training field. We don't want to keep sensei waiting!"

Naruto then raced out the door, causing his brother to sigh and hurry to catch up to the blond Jinchuuriki. Sasuke made sure to lock up the place before leaving, he had observed how the occasional drunk would try to vandalize the place and trash Naruto's things, but not his for some reason, so he made sure to keep things secure. Once that was done, Sasuke ran after his brother as the blond headed to the training field.

xXsceneXx

When they arrived, the two brothers found Hinata waiting there for them at the field.

"Sasuke-san, Naruto-kun," said Hinata shyly, "good morning."

"Morning, Hinata-chan," said Naruto with a smile, while Sasuke simply nodded in greeting, "so what kind of things do you think Kakashi-sensei will teach us today?"

"Well," said Kakashi from behind Naruto, making the blond jump, "why don't we find out?"

"Kakashi-sensei!" exclaimed Naruto in surprise, "You're early?"

"Why yes," said Kakashi, "I am. I thought that you'd like to get an early start on your training, so I decided to come here early."

In truth, after speaking with the Hokage, Kakashi had decided to take his team's training seriously for once. Looking at his team, he could see himself and his old comrades Rin and Obito in them. That fact made him feel that, maybe, he could atone for their deaths by training these kids to become the best Shinobi team Konoha has had since the Sannin.

"Well," said Kakashi, "now that we're all here, we can get started on your training. Since the three of you come from families with prominent Shinobi backgrounds, have any of you begun training in the usual chakra control techniques?"

"Well," said Naruto, "nii-san and I have already done the tree walking drills."

"The Juuken requires precise chakra control, so I've done those drills too," said Hinata shyly.

"Excellent," said Kakashi, "then let's get started on something a bit more fun."

Kakashi pulled out three slips of paper and held them out to his team.

"This is chakra paper," said Kakashi, "it will help us determine your elemental affinities and which jutsu you'll be able to learn. Most genin start off with one affinity and build up more as time goes on, and that affinity shows which jutsu will be easiest for them to learn. To use it, just channel chakra into the paper and watch the reaction. If the paper burns, then you have a Keaton affinity, if it splits in two then Futon, if it turns damp, Suiton, if it crumbles to dirt, Doton, and if it crinkles, Raiton."

Sasuke took the paper and focused some chakra into it, eager to see what his affinity would be. He watched as his paper crumpled into a small ball that began to burn.

"Interesting," said Kakashi, "you have a strong Raiton affinity with a secondary affinity for Katon jutsu. Rather unusual for an Uchiha, who normally specialize in Katon Jutsu. Hinata, do you want to try next?"

"S-sure," said Hinata meekly before pushing her chakra into the slip of paper she was holding.

As soon as she did this, the paper split in two and both halves became drenched with water.

"A Futon affinity with a particularly strong Suiton affinity as a secondary," said Kakashi, "very good."

"That just leaves me," said Naruto as he took his paper and pushed chakra into it.

The reaction was quite different from the others. First, the paper split into five pieces, next each piece went through a different reaction. The first one, was shredded to pieces, the second began to burn, the third became damp, the fourth turned to dirt, and the final one became rather wrinkled."

"What does this mean, Kakashi-sensei?" asked Naruto.

"It means," said Kakashi, "that you can use all of the five main elements. You have a rather strong affinity for Futon techniques, but you can also use, Katon, Suiton, Doton, and Raiton jutsu as well."

Kakashi was definitely impressed. While he knew that Naruto would have access to all five elements, he was not expecting both of his other students to have dual elemental affinities right off the bat.

"It looks like I'm going to have quite the team this year," said Kakashi, "now, let's get started."


	9. Making Waves

Team 7 was currently hiding out in one of the forested training areas in the outskirts of the village. Why were they there you ask, well, they were on a mission to track down and subdue a formidable opponent that had bested many of their comrades and left them covered with cuts and rumpled clothes as they pursued him. All three Genin were tired and both Hinata and Sasuke had their doujutsu active to track their foe, and Naruto had even created several Kage Bunshin to serve as scouts as they searched the woods.

"This is Naruto," said Naruto into the radio he was using to communicate with his team, "my clones are in position."

"Hai," said Hinata, "I have eyes on the target. Sasuke-kun, move two meters northwest and you'll intercept the target."

"Right," answered Sasuke, "Naruto, we'll force him to you. Use your clones to subdue the target, but be careful. He's not called the Bane of Genin for nothing."

Sasuke shot forward and spotted his target with his Sharingan. Drawing a Kunai, he threw it at the target, purposely missing the target to scare it in the direction of his adoptive brother's clones. When the figure saw the clones closing in on it, the target didn't falter, and instead attacked the blond and his clones with claws that tore through them, causing the Kage Bunshin to dispel from the damage as the blond was left with several slashes that healed quickly thanks to the Kyuubi inside him.

"Hinata-chan!" called out Naruto, "He's coming your way!"

The Hyuuga heiress got into a stance, prepared to face the vicious opponent, but was surprised when the target leapt into her arms and began to purr.

Yes. The dangerous target Team 7 was pursuing was the pet cat of the Daimyo's wife's pet cat, Tora. And yes, this cat was the reason the Genin were covered in scratches and dirt.

"All that work and that thing just jumps into Hinata-chan's arms?!" groaned Naruto.

"Well done team," said Kaskashi as he walked up, "that took a total of 34 minutes. A new record for this mission."

"Let's just get that monster to its owner before I strangle the damn demon," grumbled Sasuke, his irritation breaking through his cool and collected persona.

xXsceneXx

"…ok, I kinda feel sorry for him now," deadpanned Naruto as he watched Tora as he was practically being smothered to death by his owner's hugs.

"An excellent job Team 7," said Hiruzen as the team received their payment.

"Are there any other missions?" sighed Naruto, causing the rest of his team to stare at him, "There's a big ramen sale this weekend and I could use some spending money."

"Well," chuckled Hiruzen, "there's weeding the Yamanaka garden, cleaning the Inuzuka kennels, painting a wall of the academy building."

Suddenly the squirming Tora managed to extract himself from his owner's grip and leapt out the window.

"…Well," said Hiruzen, "looks like we can add capturing Tora to that list again."

But when he turned toward Team 7, all he could see was fading afterimages from where they had once been standing.

"hmmm," said Hiruzen as he checked his watch, "that was faster than Minato's technique."

"Indeed," said Kakashi.

xXsceneXx

When Kakashi managed to track his team down, he found them in a free-for-all Taijutsu battle royale in the training field. Sasuke had been training with a sword and was fighting off wild kicks and punches from Naruto with a practice bokken that he had gotten. Hinata had gotten quite skilled as well. She had begun, after listening to suggestions from her teammates, to take advantage of her Byakugan and natural flexibility to specialize in weapon skills to compliment her Juuken. Kakashi saw her blocking swipes from Sasuke's weapon with training kunai in her hands. Naruto had also trained himself to become better as well with his own skillset. He would take advantage of his immense chakra reserves to create a near endless supply of Kage Bunshin to serve as his support in battle. In this spar, he was using his clones to springboard off of and use as meat shields to block his teammates attacks.

Kakashi couldn't help but smile as he watched his team work and flow, knowing each other's skills and weaknesses to an extent that a spar like this didn't have a clear winner, and instead helped the trio to better themselves and work harder. He would have loved to let the three of them continue, but he felt it was a good time to step in.

"Alright you three," he called out, "let's not overdo it."

The three genin broke away from their spar and walked up to there sensei, taking bottles of water that he handed to them.

"Sorry about that Kakashi-sensei," said Naruto, "but we are not going after that cat without at least a month to cool down. Otherwise, we might just kill the beast to keep it from escaping again."

"Naruto," sighed Kakashi, "you can't do that."

"He's right," said Sasuke, getting a smile from Kakashi until the Genin continued, "killing it would make his owner sad and she'd simply get a new cat. We'd just need to break a leg or two so it can't run anymore."

Kakashi sweatdropped as the three Genin nodded sagely at this plan.

"How about I take you three out for ramen?" asked Kakashi, "I have a surprise for the three of you tomorrow."

"All right!" cheered Naruto. The blond was always up for ramen.

"I wouldn't mind a bowl or two," said Sasuke with a small smile.

"I like their miso ramen," said Hinata shyly.

"Let's go!" said Naruto, "All you can eat, dattebayo! Kakashi-sensei's paying!"

"Wait, what?!" exclaimed Kakashi, "I didn't…"

"I'm down for that," said Sasuke, getting a nod from Hinata.

As the three genin ran off, Kakashi couldn't help but sigh as he imagined the dent in his budget this dinner would make.

xXsceneXx

The next morning, Team 7 met up at the Mission room where Kakashi was waiting for them with his book in hand. He had stopped arriving late to the training after their first training session. He had decided to honor his late team's memory by training his students to be their very best. He could even see Obito and himself in Naruto and Sasuke respectively and he could even see a bit of Rin in Hinata as she developed her skill. He still read his Icha Icha, that would never change, but he took their training a lot more seriously, teaching them new jutsu and building on the skills they already had. Smiling at his team behind his mask, he closed and pocketed his book.

"Good to see the three of you made it," said Kakashi.

"So what's this big surprise, Kakashi-sensei?" asked Naruto.

"Well," said Kakashi, "I've seen the three of you doing so well in your training and performing all those D-Rank missions, and I think the three of you are ready for something bigger."

"What do you mean bigger?" asked Sasuke.

"As of this morning," said Kakashi, "I've put in a request for your first C-Rank mission."

"A C-Rank?" exclaimed Naruto excitedly, "that's awesome-ttebayo!"

"D-do you really think we're ready, Kakashi-sensei?" asked Hinata nervously.

"After seeing the three of you train, I think you can handle a C-Rank," said Kakashi.

"So what is it?" asked Sasuke, "What's the mission?"

"We're going to be escorting a bridge builder back to his home in Nami no Kuni," said Kakashi, "there might be bandits along the path, so our job will be to keep him safe. Meet up at the north gate in one hour and you'll meet our client."

"HAI!" said the team as they headed off to pack.

xXsceneXx

52 minutes later, Team 7 was waiting at the north gate with their gear in their packs. Soon, Kakashi came up to the trio with a man that looked more than a little hungover.

"This is our client, Tazuna," said Kakashi, "we'll be escorting him back to his home in Nami no Kuni and shall be in charge of his safety along the way."

"These three are the ones who'll protect me?" grunted Tazuna, "All I see is a dumb blond, a brooding kid with a duck but hairdo and a shy princess."

Tazuna suddenly felt something warm and wet slide down his cheek. Feeling the substance, he was surprised to find that it was blood, his blood, leaking from a small cut on his cheek.

"I'm sorry, my hand slipped," said Naruto as he moved out of the stance he was in from throwing a kunai, "must be because I'm a 'dumb blond.'"

"Naruto," said Kakashi sternly, "you are not to harm our client. And Tazuna-san, please do not insult my team. Because as their sensei, that's an insult towards me as well."

The last statement was said with a cheerful voice and an eye-smile, but Tazuna could feel the ominous aura leaking from the Jonin and nodded his head frantically.

"Good," said Kakashi cheerfully, "then let's get underway."

xXsceneXx

The team continued on their way, encountering no real trouble as they made their way towards their destination. However, this changed when the three of them noticed a puddle on the side of the road. Sasuke frowned and activated his Sharingan for a brief second, glancing at the puddle. Sasuke then tapped a pattern on his brother's arm, causing Naruto to tap a similar pattern on Hinata's arm.

As they walked past the puddle, a Shinobi wearing a horned headband rose out of the water with a similarly garbed Shinobi rising out of another puddle hidden behind a rock. The two assailants rushed toward Kakashi, extending a chain of razor sharp blades from gauntlets on their arms and wrapped these blade chains around the Jonin.

"You're finished," said the masked Shinobi as he and his partner tugged on the chains, causing the blades to tear Kakashi apart.

"Now for the kids," snarled the other Shinobi as he rushed at Naruto with his clawed gauntlet.

Naruto's eyes widened as the bladed claw impaled him through his stomach, but the masked Shinobi's triumph was short lived when Naruto's body vanished in a poof of smoke, revealing him to be a Kage Bunshin. Before the Shinobi could react, he was sent flying back as Hinata buried a Juuken strike into the man's gut and Sasuke used a Raiton enhanced blade to remove the man's arm from his body, causing him to fall to the ground as his heart began to go into cardiac arrest.

"You killed my brother!" yelled the remaining assassin as he charged at Hinata with his gauntlet, but he was stopped when a powerful blast of air sent him into a tree.

"You won't beat us," said Naruto as he walked up holding three Kunai.

"Those won't do much," said the assassin.

"We'll see," said Naruto as he threw the three weapons.

The Shinobi tried to block with his gauntlet, but the Kunai had been coated with Futon chakra and stabbed into the gauntlet, burying themselves deep into the assailant's arm. The Shinobi cried out in pain, allowing Hinata to paralyze his legs with some well placed Juuken strikes.

"Now," said Sasuke as he held his sword to the man's throat, "who are you and why are you here?"

Instead of answering, the Shinobi moved his neck so the blade would slit his throat before falling to the ground dead.

"Great," groaned Naruto, "now what do we do?"

"We ask our client," said Kakashi as he walked out of the bushes, "you three did well, but the question still remains: why did tow Chunin rank missing-nin attack a simple bridge builder on a C-Rank mission. Now talk."

 


	10. Demon of the Mist

Tazuna faced the intense glare of Kakashi as the Jonin waited for his explanation. After fighting the two Chunin ranked Shinobi and watching is teak take their first kills, he was losing patience with their client rather quickly.

"I can explain," sighed Tazuna.

"Please do so," said Kakashi coldly.

"My country isn't wealthy enough to afford a B Rank," sighed Tazuna in resignation, "I couldn't afford to pay for a higher level of protection."

"So," said Kakashi, "what kind of threat would cause you to take such a risk?"

"A terrible man named Gato has taken over my home," said Tazuna.

"Gato," said Sasuke, "do you mean Gato, the leader of the Gato Shipping Company?"

"The one and only," said Tazuna grimly, "but he is far from the enterprising CEO that the public sees him as. He's a ruthless tyrant that has seized control over the ports of Nami-no-Kuni and placed an embargo that allows him to control all traffic in and out. The country is being bled dry in order to pay his fees, and if something isn't done, people will suffer. That's why he wants me dead. The super bridge that I'm building will render his shipping embargo useless, as we will have a direct link to the mainland, thus he wants me dead."

"I see," said Kakashi, "so on one hand, we could abandon this mission and head back, leaving you to face the consequences of your deceit, or we could continue on, and possibly face missing-nin that could be at A-rank levels."

"Please," said Tazuna, "my family and my people need this bridge to gain our freedom from this tyrant."

"This isn't my decision," said Kakashi grimly, "I can't force my students to go through with this task. It is their choice whether we leave or stay."

Kakashi looked at his three students with a calm gaze from his exposed eye. The three Genin glanced at each other before Naruto stepped forward.

"Despite the fact that this mission should be a B-rank at the least, we can't just leave those people as they are," said Naruto seriously.

"We were hired to protect him, so let's finish the job," said Sasuke, "that's what we do, right Hinata?"

Sasuke glanced at their lavender-eyed teammate, but to his surprise, she was staring off into space with a distracted look.

"Hinata-chan?" asked Naruto as he noticed his teammate's distraction, "Is everything alright?"

"I-it's nothing, Naruto-kun," said Hinata softly with a slight blush.

"If you say so," said Naruto, but Kakashi frowned a bit behind his mask and made a note to talk to the shy heiress later about what he suspected was bothering her.

"Well," said Kakashi, "it looks like we'll be sticking around, Tazuna-san. But do not lie to us again."

"Thank you," said Tazuna.

xXsceneXx

Meanwhile, in a dimly lit warehouse, several figures were gathered in a meeting.

"The Demon brothers failed," grumbled a short, portly man that was smoking a cigar, "you just can't get good help for your money these days. I do hope you'll be worth the price."

A tall, muscular man with a large sword strapped to his back snorted and faced the door, "Those idiots were weak. I'm on an entirely different level. Remember that, Gato."

"Just don't disappoint," said Gato as he walked out of the room with his several bodyguards.

"Haku," said the man with the sword, "let's go."

"Hai, Zabuza-sama," said a feminine figure wearing a mask as the two of them walked out.

xXsceneXx

As the group continued to walk along the forested path, Kakashi pulled Hinata aside, allowing the two of them to fall behind so he could talk to her in private.

"Hinata," said Kakashi kindly, "we need to talk."

"Did I do something wrong, Kakashi-sensei?" asked Hinata nervously.

"No," said Kakashi, "it's just that you've seemed troubled since the battle."

"I-I'm fine," said Hinata.

Kakashi shook his head, "I know you're not, because I've seen the symptoms before. Tell me, this was your first kill, right?"

"…yes," said Hinata softly, "I acted on instinct, and now that man is dead."

"Hinata," said Kakashi kindly, "wanting to kill to protect others is perfectly natural, and what you're feeling now is natural as well. If you weren't feeling regret over your first kill, then I would send you to the Yamanaka for a psyche evaluation."

"But Sasuke-san and Naruto-kun both aren't affected," said Hinata sadly, "they're so much stronger than I am."

"The reason for that isn't because they're immune," said Kakashi, "but rather that they've seen into the darkness due to their pasts. They've already seen death, and have gone through the same regret you feel now."

"Have you ever felt it?" asked Hinata.

"Every time I visit the memorial stone," said Kakashi, "and it won't go away, but you'll become stronger and will grow from it."

"Thank you for the talk," said Hinata.

"I am your sensei after all," said Kakashi as the two of them rejoined the group.

They continued to walk for a while, when suddenly, Naruto whirled and hurled a Kunai into the bushes. Going to check, he saw he had accidentally killed a rabbit with a snow-white coat.

"Oops?" said Naruto sheepishly.

' _A rabbit wouldn't have a white pelt this time of year,_ ' thought Kakashi, ' _that means…Kawarimi!_ '

"EVERYBODY DOWN!" yelled Kakashi as he pulled Tazuna to the ground.

Team 7 dove to the ground just in time to avoid a massive Zanbatō that flew spinning over their heads, only stopping when its blade embedded into the trunk of a tree.

"Heh," laughed a voice, causing the group to look up and see a muscular man wearing a sleeveless black outfit with grey arm and leg warmers and bandages over his mouth, "you brats took down the Demon Brothers? Kiri's standards must have really dropped."

"Zabuza Momochi," said Kakashi as he got to his feet, "the Demon of the Mist."

"Kakashi of the Sharingan," Zabuza responded, "I never thought I'd get the chance to go against you."

"All of you stay back and guard Tazuna," said Kakashi to his students, "Zabuza's too strong for you to defeat."

Kakashi stepped forward and moved his headband to reveal his Sharingan eye as Zabuza hopped off his blade and wrenched it free from the tree.

"I'm honored to face that eye of yours," said Zabuza, "but it won't help you win here.  _Kirigakure no Jutsu!_ "

A thick mist formed around the group, obscuring Zabuza from their vision. Naruto, Sasuke and Hinata quickly got into formation around their client, drawing their respective weapons, but suddenly they could hear Zabuza's voice echoing around them.

" **Liver, Lungs, Spine, Jugular, Larynx, Brain, Kidneys, Heart,** " his voice echoed ominously, " **eight targets to cause death. Which one should I pick?** "

The three genin shivered at the amount of Killing Intent leaking into the clearing, but Kakashi simply smiled reassuringly at them.

"Don't worry," he said, "I won't let anything happen to you three."

"Wishful thinking," said Zabuza as he appeared behind Kakashi and bisected him with a swing of his massive sword.

The three Genin watched in horror as Zabuza loomed over them while their sensei's body fell to the ground, but suddenly, Kakashi's corpse turned into water and the Jonin reappeared, stabbing a kunai into Zabuza's neck. His victory was short lived though, as the Zabuza he stabbed was revealed to be a water clone as well.

"Impressive," said Zabuza as the mist thinned a bit, "to think you copied my Jutsu back then. Too bad it won't save you!"

Zabuza shot at Kakashi swinging his massive blade, causing the Sharingan user to duck down to avoid being decapitated. As he dropped to the ground, Kakashi swept his leg out, aiming to knock Zabuza's legs out from under him. The Demon of the Mist jumped over his opponent's leg sweep, and performed a midair kick to Kakashi's head that sent the Copy-nin sprawling back.

"Not quite good enough," said Zabuza as he raised his sword above his head.

Before Zabuza could deliver the killing blow however, Kakashi lashed out and slammed a kick into his gut, stunning him long enough to get out of range and retreat to a small lake in the clearing they were in. Kakashi tried to stand on the water with his chakra, but was surprised when he instead fell through up to his neck.

"This water is heavy," he said surprised.

"Foolish," said Zabuza, as he appeared next to him with a Shunshin, "now you're mine!  _Suirō no Jutsu!_ "

A water sphere formed around Kakashi, trapping him on the lake with Zabuza maintaining the technique with one arm.

"Now," said the Demon of the Mist as he created a Mizu Bunshin, "to finish the brats."

**To be continued…**

 


	11. Fall of the Demon

Team 7 couldn't help but feel a chill of fear as they watched Zabuza's Mizu Bunshin walk toward them with his large sword held on his shoulder. They had just watched their sensei, a man who they could barely defeat when they worked together, get beaten and trapped by their current opponent with said opponent barely breaking a sweat. Now that they had to face him alone and still protect Tazuna, their chances of survival were looking rather slim.

"Alright, which one of you gaki will be first?" smirked the Mizu Bunshin.

"This is bad," muttered Sasuke, "he took out Kakashi-sensei so easily."

"We can't fight someone at his level," said Hinata.

"It doesn't matter!" yelled Naruto, surprising his teammates, "we're Shinobi of Konoha and our mission is to protect Tazuna-san, so we'll do so."

"Ha," laughed Zabuza's clone, "you gaki think you can just put on a headband and call yourselves real Shinobi? We are tools of death and weapons of war, the three of you don't have the guts to be real Shinobi. But no matter, I'm going to cut out those guts anyway."

"Nii-san," said Naruto as he made a hand sign, "maneuver #11!"

"You never give up," smirked Sasuke, "got it, Hinata, protect Tazuna!"

"Hai," said Hinata as she got into a Juuken stance.

Ever since the two of them had resolved to confront Itachi one day, Naruto and Sasuke had been training together, developing several combination techniques and maneuvers like the one they used against Kakashi during the bell test. Now it was time to see how they matched up against a strong opponent.

As Naruto created several Kage Bunshin, Sasuke made several hand seals and took a deep breath, " _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ "

" _Fūton: Daitoppa!_ " yelled Naruto as he blew a blast of wind from his lungs.

Sasuke breathed out a stream of fire that merged with the wind to form a massive inferno that shot at the Mizu Bunshin. The copy simply smirked and blurred through several hand seals before stopping and focusing its chakra.

" _Suiton: Suijinheki!_ " yelled the Bunshin as it spat out a mass of water that formed into a wall that absorbed the inferno, turning to steam as the fire was quelled, Zabuza's clone then shot at Naruto and Sasuke, kicking the older brother aside as he attacked the younger blond. Luckily for Naruto, his Kage Bunshin were able to slam into the Demon of the Mist, preventing him fro taking the blond's head off with his sword.

"We need to make the real him move, while keeping the Bunshin from killing us," said Sasuke.

"Easier said than done!" said Naruto.

"I have a plan," said Sasuke, "Hinata, be ready to move."

"H-hai," said Hinata.

"If you have time to talk then just die!" yelled the Mizu-bunshin as it attacked with its sword.

Sasuke rolled out of the way of the blade and began to focus his chakra, "Naruto, maneuver# 8!"

"Hai, nii-san," said Naruto.

The brothers began to weave hand seals together while Naruto's Kage Bunshin kept Zabuza's Mizu Bunshin off their backs.

"Ready," said Naruto, as a clone jumped to his side, " _Suiton: Suihachi!_ "

" _Fūton: Daitoppa!_ " yelled the clone.

" _Raiton: Jibashi!_ " Sasuke called out, " _Konbijutsu: Arashi no Uzu!_ "

The Mizu Bunshin's eyes widened as Naruto shot a blast of water from his hand that was turned into a twisting torrent from the blast of wind his clone generated that absorbed the blast of lightning that Sasuke generated from his hands, creating a vortex of electrified water that shot at the Mizu-Bunshin. The Bunshin couldn't avoid in time and was torn apart by the vortex.

"NOW!" yelled Sasuke, causing Hinata to throw several Kunai with deadly accuracy using her Byakugan, while coating them with Fūton chakra for extra power.

Zabuza growled as the Kunai shot at him. He knew he wouldn't be able to block all the Kunai with only one hand and the chakra coating them, along with the fact that they were aimed at his vital points, meant that taking the hit was out of the question, so gritting his teeth, he pulled his hand free from the Water Prison and leap out of the way.

"Troublesome Gaki," spat the Demon of the Mist, "looks like I'll deal with you myself."

"Unlikely," said an icy voice, causing Zabuza to turn and see a tired yet angry Kakashi Hatake pulling himself to his feet on the water as the tome in his Sharingan began to spin unnoticed, "my Genin are strong and when they work together, they can even stand against someone like you. However you're not fighting them. You're facing me."

"Fine then, Sharingan no Kakashi," said Zabuza before blurring through several hand seals, "show me the strength that made you so infamous.  _Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!_ "

Kakashi simply replied by weaving through his own set of hand seals, " _Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!_ "

The two Jonin created large serpentine dragons out of the water they were standing on and caused them to clash together violently before canceling each other out.

"That won't be enough," said Zabuza as he began more hand seals, " _Suiton: Dai…_ "

" _Suiton: Daibakufu no Jutsu!_ " yelled Kakashi.

"What?!" exclaimed Zabuza in surprise before he was slammed by a massive vortex of water that Kakashi created with his jutsu.

The blast sent the missing-nin smashing through several trees before finally coming to a stop with a broken and sore body as Kakshi walked up with a Kunai raised.

"You," growled Zabuza, "how did you…"

"Know what jutsu I was about to use?" finished Kakashi with a cold look.

"Can you see the future?" gasped Zabuza.

"Yes," said Kakashi, "and your future is death. But before that, I am going to show you what happens when you threaten my students."

Infusing the Kunai with Raiton chakra, Kakashi hurled it at Zabuza's right arm, before drawing a second Kunai and doing the same to his left. The chakra infused blades tore through the bone and muscle while simultaneously paralyzing the Missing-nin's body due to the electrical discharge.

"Like I said," said Kakashi as he glared into Zabuza's eyes, "your future is death."

With that, he brought a third Kunai down and stabbed through Zabuza's neck, causing the Demon of the Mist's blood to stain the bandages around his mouth crimson before he passed on to the Pure World.

"That's that," said Kakashi as he covered his Sharingan again before he staggered forward and would have fallen to the ground if the rest of Team 7 hadn't rushed up to catch him.

"Kakashi-sensei," said Naruto, "are you alright?"

"I used up too much chakra using the Sharingan for so long," said Kakashi, "let's get moving. I'd like to hope Zabuza was the biggest threat, but let's be careful nonetheless."

"Follow me," said Tazuna, "we're almost to my home. We can all rest up there."

xXsceneXx

From a vantage point hidden in the trees, a masked figure watched the group leave with shock and horror. The figure had been Zabuza's ace in the hole, his student disguised as a Kiri hunter-nin that would intervene if thing got out of hand and whisk the Demon of the Mist out of danger under the pretense of retrieving a target. Unfortunately, the false ANBU had not been quick enough to stop the Konoha Jonin from killing Zabuza. Now the faker was a tool without a master.

With a solemn look back at his former master, the fake ANBU headed to inform Gato of his resignation.

xXsceneXx

Gato growled in anger after hearing of Zabuza's death through his spies. The Missing-nin had cost him a pretty penny to hire and he had still failed to finish the job. He would need someone stronger to finish this mission and prevent the blasted bridge builder from finishing his work. As he thought back to the report on the team that had fought Zabuza, a smirk made its way onto his face.

"Get me our fastest messenger Hawk," said the diminutive crime lord, "I have an important offer to make."

 


	12. Talk and Troubles

In a dark shed somewhere in the Elemental Nations, a cloaked figure was reading a scroll that had been delivered via messenger hawk while his companion leaned against the wall polishing a katana.

"We're leaving," said the one with the message.

"What is it this time?" asked the one with the sword.

"We've gotten a request that has the potential to be quite profitable," said the first person as he wrote out a response and attached it to the leg of the hawk.

"You and your money," sighed the one with the sword, "what is it this time?"

"We are to help deal with some Shinobi that are giving our client some trouble," said the first one, "we are promised an advance payment of 1,000,000 ryo and an additional 200,000,000 ryo upon the completion of the mission."

"Tch, fine," said the swordsman as he sheathed his blade, "where are we headed now?"

"We're off to Nami-no-Kuni," said the first one as he adjusted his cloak, "so grab that cursed sword of yours, Kurashiya."

"Whatever," said the now named swordsman as he sheathed his blade, "don't bust a stitch, Kakuzu."

With that, the two members walked out of the shed, allowing light to shine on their black cloaks, illuminating the red clouds stitched into them.

xXsceneXx

After a bit of traveling, Team 7 arrived at Tazuna's house tired from the fight and from helping Kakashi limp along. When they entered the dwelling, Tazuna's daughter, Tsunami quickly helped them get Kakashi to one of the guest rooms while the team rested up a bit.

"Thank you all for guarding my father," said Tsunami, "I'm sorry we had to deceive you."

"All part of the job," said Sasuke, "we knew the risks when we decided to continue."

"We won't let this country stay in Gato's hands," said Naruto, "We'll beat him down and save this land Dattebayo!"

"You're a bunch of fools," said a child's voice, causing Team 7 to turn and see a frowning boy standing in the doorway.

"What did you say?" growled Naruto while Sasuke glared at the boy.

"Inari!" yelled the woman, "please excuse my son."

"You heard me," said the boy as he ignored his mother in favor of his tirade, "there's no such thing as heroes. You'll all just die, so why don't you just go home to your safe and happy lives."

"Listen brat," said Naruto, "don't think you know anything about us!"

"Tch," said Inari, "you all probably live nice lives with your families. People like you don't know a thing about suffering, so just go home and leave us be."

*SMASH*

Naruto stood to his feet as he pulled his fist out of the splintered boards that was once a dining table and regarded the boy with a look so furious and cold that it made a winter storm in Yuki-no-Kuni seem like a summer day in Suna.

"You think you know so much about us, Teme?" growled Naruto, "You think you know about real suffering? Have you ever had to lose your parents at birth, growing up never knowing them? Have you ever watched as your brother stood over the corpses of your adopted family after murdering them? You have a family here that loves you here in this house. Don't  **EVER**  try and say you have it worse."

With that, Naruto stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him.

"You got off lucky," said Sasuke coldly, "if you weren't our client's grandson, he would have hit you, and not just the table. And I wouldn't have stopped him."

"Has he really been through all that?" asked Tsunami.

"Yes," said a weak voice from the doorway, "and not just him."

The group turned to see a tired looking Kakashi leaning against the doorframe, "All of us have gone through losses in life and have faced hardship, but for Naruto and Sasuke, they've had it hardest. They both lost their entire family, twice in Naruto's case, and they picked themselves up and kept fighting. What your son said, it really touched a nerve with Naruto."

Inari turned and ran to his room, leaving his mother to sigh, "I'm so sorry. He's been like this since Kaiza died."

"Who is Kaiza?" asked Hinata.

"Kaiza was the closest thing Inari had to a father after my husband died," said Tsunami, "he was a hero to this town and brought us all hope. Inari loved him, and he was a great man. Unfortunately, Gato did not like how he brought light to the dark grip he held over the town and had him publicly executed."

"His death broke the spirit of the town and shattered Inari's belief in heroes," sighed Tazuna, "I'm hoping that the bridge I'm building will restore that spirit."

"I promise that we'll do what we can to help," said Kakashi, "we've signed onto this mission, and we won't abandon it. Hinata-chan, can you go and find Naruto?"

"M-me?" asked Hinata.

Kakashi gave her an eye-smile, "I have confidence in your ability to calm him down."

Hinata blushed but headed out the door to find Naruto.

xXsceneXx

Naruto was currently fighting a battle royale with his clones in a forest clearing, tearing through them with his fists and Kunai as he tried to burn off his anger and frustration. After destroying the last clone Naruto let out a sigh.

"Is there something you need, Hinata-chan?" he asked, causing the timid heiress to step into the clearing.

"H-how did you know it was me?" asked Hinata.

"I heard you coming," said Naruto, "you stepped on a twig as you approached."

Hinata blushed as she forced herself to remain in control (and conscious) around her crush, "Are you feeling alright?" she asked.

"Is this because of what I said earlier?" asked Naruto.

Hinata nodded and walked over to him, "If you want to talk, I wouldn't mind listening."

"What's there to say?" sighed Naruto, "That stuff is in the past. I just want to look forward."

"I wish I could be as strong as you, Naruto-kun," said Hinata sadly, causing the blond to look at her confusedly.

"What do you mean, Hinata-chan?" asked Naruto, "You're an amazing person and the heiress to the Hyuuga Clan. Plus you have that Doujutsu that makes your eyes look all serious."

Hinata blushed and decided that, since Naruto came clean about his past, she could muster the courage to do so as well, "When I was three, I was kidnapped and my father had to lose his brother while rescuing me. This made him somewhat cold towards me and my sister and I fell out of his favor because I was too weak and didn't want to hurt Hanabi in a match."

"That's crazy," said Naruto, "just because you care for your sister doesn't mean your weak! Don't let anyone tell you differently."

Hinata blushed dark red from the praise and decided to do one last bold act before her courage ran out. Steeling herself, she leaned over to the blond and gave him a quick peck on the cheek.

"Thank you Naruto-kun," she said before bolting back to the house.

Naruto stood there in shock from the kiss, even if it was only on the cheek. He never received anything like that from girls before, and he couldn't help but notice now how pretty Hinata was, and how her hair had a faint lavender smell that he caught when she kissed him. It was nice. He was snapped out of his thoughts, however when he heard a deep voice chuckling in his mind.

" **Looks like you found a cute vixen, gaki,** " said the Kyuubi's voice.

"Kyuubi?" said Naruto, "What do you want?"

" **Nothing really,** " said the Kyuubi, " **it gets boring in here all the time, so I thought I'd amuse myself. So are you going to go after her?** "

"Wh-what are you talking about?" stammered Naruto, "Hinata-chan is my teammate and she probably was just thanking me for talking to her."

The Kyuubi sighed at the stupidity of his host, " **Don't say I didn't try to help then.** "

"Why  _are_ you trying to help anyways?" asked Naruto, "You didn't seem that concerned about me before."

" **Who knows?** " said the Kyuubi, " **We're stuck with each other so maybe I just wanted to be cordial for once.** "

"How do I know I can trust you?" asked Naruto.

" **You don't,** " said the Kyuubi, " **but whether you do or don't doesn't concern me, gaki. Now you should get back to the others. I'm tired of talking and want to sleep for a bit.** "

"Fine," sighed Naruto as the Kyuubi cut the connection, "stupid fox."

As Naruto headed back to Tazuna's house, the Kyuubi sat in Naruto's mindscape thinking.

' ** _Those eyes of his, they're like yours. Is he the one you spoke of all those years ago, father?_** '

xXsceneXx

That night, at Gato's headquarters, two figures wearing black cloaks with red clouds on them and straw hats arrived. The guards at the door tried to stop them to ask for credentials, but were cut down by the katana that one of them carried. Walking into Gato's personal office, the two of them took off their hats and regarded the short CEO sitting behind the ornate desk.

"Kakuzu," said Gato, "your reputation precedes you. Though I would appreciate if your partner didn't kill my men."

"Tch, they shouldn't have gotten in the way," said Kurashiya as he flicked the blood off his sword and onto the expensive carpet.

Kakuzu sighed while a vein throbbed on Gato's head from the swordsman's actions, "The payment?"

Gato nodded and his men pulled out several cases that they opened to reveal the Ryo that they had been promised as an advance payment.

"You can count it," said Gato, "I always make sure to pay the ones I hire in full."

"You said there was an opportunity for both of us to make a profit?" prompted Kakuzu.

"Indeed," said Gato as he steepled his fingers, "I'm having some trouble with some Shinobi that were hired to keep me from killing a bridge builder that wants to free this land from my grip."

"I don't see how this will benefit me," said Kakuzu.

Gato simply smiled and handed the report his agents had gathered on the battle with Zabuza to the Akatsuki member, "On the team is an Uchiha with an awakened Sharingan and an unmarked Hyuuga girl. Also leading the team is Kakashi of the Sharingan, whom has a large price on his head in several countries due to his skill. You could collect on the Jonin's bounty and sell the two brats to Kumo as Doujutsu breeding stock. As for the blond brat, you're free to do as you wish with him."

"Hmmm," said Kakuzu, as he read the report, "that does sound like an intriguing proposal. Though you did not mention Sharingan Kakashi in your previous report."

"Is that going to be a problem?" asked Gato with a raised eyebrow.

"Perhaps," said Kakuzu, "if you want me to accept, I'll need another 100,000 ryo as compensation."

"Fine," growled Gato, "it will be delivered before the end of the day."

"Then I look forward to doing business with you," said Kakuzu. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Note: 1 ryo is equal to one dime in USD so they were offered about $20,110,000 to kill Team 7.


	13. Unexpected Reinforcements

The next day, Kakashi had recovered enough for the team to begin guard duty at the bridge while Tazuna worked to complete it. It was simple at first, but Team 7 noticed an argument going on with some of the workmen and Tazuna. Seeing that things were slow for them at the moment, the group decided to listen in.

"I don't care what you say, Tazuna," said a worker while several others stood by him, "we have homes and families to protect and we can't do that if Gato kills us for helping you!"

"Kaitou, wait," said Tazuna, "I've hired Shinobi to protect us. Powerful Shinobi from Konohagakure no Sato."

The worker glanced over to the members of Team 7 and took in their appearances, "All I see are some kids and an injured sensei. Sorry Tazuna, but we can't just rely on them to protect us, so we're gonna leave before things get dangerous."

"Fine," spat Tazuna, "get lost you cowards. I don't need you! I'll build the bridge myself."

As the men left, Tazuna slumped and turned toward the Konoha Shinobi, "I'm sorry. It looks like you decided to stick with this mission for nothing. Without workers, I can't build this bridge."

"Well," said Kakashi as he walked over with a slight limp, "if it's numbers you need, I think my team might be able to help with that."

"How?" asked Tazuna, "There's only four of you and we'll need more than three kids and a sensei that walks with a limp."

Kakashi gave the man an eye smile, "Naruto-kun, if you would?"

Naruto smirked and moved his hands into a familiar seal and channeled his Chakra, "Taiju Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!"

Tazuna's eyes widened as an explosion of smoke that covered the partially constructed bridge. When the smoke cleared, his eyes bugged out, as now the bridge was covered by a small army of clones of the blond teen, all of them smirking at the bridge builder.

"This enough for you?" the copies asked as one.

"More than enough," smiled Tazuna.

"Just tell them what you need them to do," said Naruto.

"Right," said Tazuna.

The bridge builder began to direct the clones to perform the tasks needed to continue the construction of the bridge, while Kakashi took his team to do more training while he recovered from his fight with Zabuza, leaving a dozen Naruto clones on guard duty.

xXsceneXx

The Genin followed Kakashi to a clearing where he leaned on a tree.

"Kakashi-sensei," said Naruto, "what are we doing here?"

"Well," said Kakashi, "since we have some time, I wanted to work on some new training. I know we've covered the basic water walking drills during our training sessions, we'll start working on some elemental jutsu training."

"You're gonna teach us some of your jutsu?" exclaimed Naruto.

"I think you've earned it," said Kakashi, "now that Zabuza's taken care of, we should be able to relax a bit before we…LOOK OUT!"

The team jumped to the side and was just barely able to dodge a torrent of fire that shot at them. As they recovered, a figure wearing black robes that had red clouds stamped on them landed in the clearing with a smirk on his face as he held a katana with an ornate handle that had a dragon's gaping maw at the base.

"Heh," laughed the Shinobi, "you brats managed to dodge."

"Who are you?" growled Naruto, but Kakashi held up a hand to stop him from advancing.

"I recognize you," said Kakashi, "Dragon Fang Kurashiya, a missing-nin from Kumo and a member of the Akatsuki now by the looks of it."

"As to be expected from Kakashi Hatake of the Sharingan," said another voice as another cloaked figure walked out of the trees, "though I'd expect my partner to use his brain and act like a real Shinobi once in a while. A pity."

"Kakuzu," said Kakashi as he scowled behind his mask, "a missing-nin from Taki. Not much else mentioned in the Bingo Books."

"I'm pleased you know me," said Kakuzu, "but I've been paid to kill you, and I'd like to collect that bounty on your head as well. Kurashiya, deal with the brats while I take care of Hatake here."

"Tch," said Kurashiya as he readied his katana, "don't order me around, Kakuzu."

"Don't underestimate him," said Kakashi as he warned his team, "they are elite Shinobi and won't hesitate."

"You should pay more attention," said Kakuzu as his fist turned black and he punched at Kakashi, shattering the tree the Jonin was in front of when his strike was dodged.

' _Such power,_ ' thought Kakashi before weaving through several hand seals, " _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ "

Kakashi shot a large fireball at the missing-nin, but Kakuzu made several hand seals of his own and spat out a large wall of water that doused the fireball easily.

"Is that the best you can do?" asked Kakuzu as he made more hand signs and turned his fist black again before punching at Kakashi.

' _Crap,_ ' thought Kakashi as he dodged the punch, ' _I'm still recovering from fighting Zabuza. I can't let this drag out too long, and I'm not strong enough to use the Sharingan again so soon._ '

Weaving through several more hand seals, Kakashi took a deep breath and blew out bullets of compressed air at Kakuzu, " _Futon: Air Bullets!_ "

As Kakuzu dodged around Kakashi's attack, his partner was taking on the three Genin of Team 7 with a sadistic smirk on his face as he slashed at them with his katana. Naruto had created several Kage Bunshin that were hidden around the area and they used Kawarimi to switch with their teammates when they were about to be injured, a tactic that had already saved their lives a dozen times during the battle.

"Cowards," spat Kurashiya as he cut down another Kage Bunshin, "you brats can't put up a good fight!"

"Shut up!" yelled Naruto as he threw a kunai at Kurashiya that the missing-nin dodged with ease.

"Is that the best you've got, Blondie?" asked Kurashiya with a smirk.

"No," said Naruto, causing the Shinobi to frown before the poof of a Kawarimi behind his head made him spin with wide eyes.

"Take this!" yelled Sasuke as he swung his sword at the swordsmen's unguarded neck.

Kurashiya was able to dodge the attack, but the fact that it surprised him hindered his reaction time and he received a cut across his cheek as a result. Scowling at the Genin, he slammed a kick into Sasuke's gut that sent the Genin sprawling back.

"You brats," spat the swordsman, "I'll teach you to think you can actually match a real Shinobi."

Gathering some of his blood on his thumb, he proceeded to spread it over the flat side of his katana.

"Drink up Kyuketsuki," said Kurashiya.

The blade absorbed the blood that was spread on it causing the eyes in the dragon head to glow bright red as the head itself let out a roar. Suddenly, flames erupted over the katana's edge and the missing-nin shot at Sasuke swinging his blade at the Genin, his blazing sword cleaving through the Uchiha's sword easily.

"Time's up," said Kurashiya as he impaled Sasuke, only for the body to be replaced by a wooden log.

" _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ " yelled Sasuke from behind the Shinobi as he spat a stream of fire at him.

Kurashiya spun around and brought his flaming sword down on the fireball, dispelling it with ease, "Is that your best shot?"

" _Suiton: Mizurappa!_ " yelled Hinata from behind Kurashiya as she spat a blast of water out of her mouth.

" _Futon: Daitoppa!_ " yelled Naruto from alongside the heiress as he shot a massive blast of wind from his mouth.

The wind and water merged into a powerful vortex that shot toward the enemy Shinobi, but Kurashiya stood his ground, attempting to block the attack with his sword. For a while, the attack and the Shinobi battled for dominance, but the attack won out and knocked the sword from the missing-nin's hand as he was sent sprawling to the ground from the force behind the jutsu.

"Take that!" cheered Naruto.

"Don't get cocky," growled Kurashiya before he shot at Sasuke.

The missing-nin grabbed the Last Uchiha's neck and lifted him off the ground, causing Sasuke to sputter as his windpipe was crushed, "Now, how about I crush your teammate's neck before we kill that bridge builder."

"Kurashiya," growled Kakuzu as he kicked Kakashi to the ground, "remember, we need the Uchiha alive."

"Doesn't mean we have to bring him back unharmed," said Kurashiya as he squeezed Sasuke's neck tighter.

Naruto watched as his brother was held helpless by the missing-nin and wished he had the power to do something. Kakashi was busy with his own opponent and neither he nor Hinata would be able to intervene before Kurashiya could snap Sasuke's neck.

" ** _Do you want to save him?_** " asked the Kyuubi from his mindscape, " ** _I can help you._** "

Naruto suddenly found himself sitting in the shallow water of his mindscape staring at the large cage that housed his tenant.

"What do you want in return?" asked Naruto, "There has to be a catch. There always is in the stories about demons and their deals."

The Kyuubi was silent for a moment before he let out a booming laugh that echoed through the chamber, " **Hahaha, you have guts, kit. No, this isn't about me giving you my power in exchange for something of yours.** "

"Then what?!" yelled Naruto, "How can I save Nii-san?!"

" **Use those eyes of yours,** " said the fox, " **you didn't think the sage brought peace to the world and was revered as a god simply because he could use every element. No, he had power beyond normal Jutsu. Simply do as I say and you can save his life.** "

"Fine," said Naruto, "but I don't trust you."

" **Good,** " said the beast with a grin, " **then there's hope for you yet.** "

xXsceneXx

Naruto opened his eyes in the real world and realized only seconds had passed. Concentrating, he activated his Rinnegan and stretched out his hand toward the sword Hinata and him had knocked out of the missing-nin's hands. Focusing chakra into his palms, he reached out and pulled at the sword with his mind, causing it to rise off the ground.

"What are you doing, brat?" asked Kurashiya.

"This," said Naruto, not noticing that Hinata had seen his eyes and was staring in shock at them, having recognized them from history books, " _Banshō Ten'in!_ "

The sword went spinning silently through the air toward Naruto, slicing through Kurashiya's shoulder and tendons, forcing him to drop the Genin as he screamed in pain.

"Curse you lowlife trash!" snarled Kurashiya.

"Pathetic," sighed Kakuzu as he kicked down Kakashi again and impaled him with his blackened fist, "I'll deal with you brats myself."

Suddenly, the body he had impaled transformed into lightning that traveled through Kakuzu's body and stunned him, causing him to stagger back.

"A Raiton Kage Bunshin?" ground out Kakuzu in shock before hearing the sound of thousands of chirping birds that was followed by a lightning coated fist impaling him through his chest from behind.

"I don't need my Sharingan to be observant," said Kakashi from behind Kakuzu, "I saw the hand seals you used to activate that strange jutsu that enhanced your strength. One was quite clear: the Doton hand seal. And Doton Jutsu is always weak to Raiton."

Kakashi ripped his hand out from Kakuzu's chest and the Shinobi staggered forward, as black threads emerged from the wound, sealing it up and stopping blood flow.

"What the…?" said Kakashi in surprise.

"Looks like we're at a disadvantage," said Kakuzu, "I only have two hearts left and would rather leave to fight another day then die here."

Kakuzu reached out and his hand extended from his sleeve, connected to his arm only by the same strange black threads, grabbing Kurashiya and pulling him to Kakuzu's side. The missing-nin made a hand seal and used a Shunshin to quickly leave the area, leaving the team alone.

xXsceneXx

Once the two rouge Shinobi were a good distance away, Kakuzu threw Kurashiya to the ground in disgust.

"Idiot," growled the former Taki Shinobi, "you were beaten by three GENIN!"

"They got lucky," said the swordsman as he gripped what was left of his injured arm, "When I find them again, I will make them suffer as I rip off their fingers one by one and shove them down their throats!"

"No," snarled Kakuzu as his threads emerged from his cloak, "I've had enough of your incompetence and your attitude in general. You are a worthless excuse for a Shinobi…no, you do have one use left."

Before Kurashiya could react, Kakuzu plunged his hand into the swordsman's chest and ripped out his still beating heart. As the Shinobi lay dying, the last thing he saw was Kakuzu's threads cocooning the organ and pulling it into his own body.

"Now I have three again," said Kakuzu as he removed the ring from his former partner's left index finger and placed it in a pocket, "Leader-sama won't be happy, but that guy was an idiot anyway."

Kakuzu made several hand seals and shot a gout of flame from his mouth that incinerated his former partner's dead body.

"The new heart works well it seems," said the Akatsuki member before he left to update his superior. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A few things to note: If you thought Kakuzu and his partner were pushovers in their fight, let me try to clear the air. Kakuzu was knocking Kakashi around without taking a single injury, yet he still only possessed three hearts at this point in the fic. Since it was never stated in canon that he had all five hearts prior to Shippuden, I'm toning him down here so the team can actually win in their weakened state. Also, he retreated because his partner was incapacitated and he didn't want to face four on one odds when he wanted to take half of them in alive, so he left to conserve the hearts he still had.
> 
> As for his partner, I intended for him to die from the beginning. Since it is stated in canon that Kakuzu had a tendency to kill his partners in fits of rage, I felt it would be fitting that he do so by taking the man's heart to replace the one Kakashi destroyed. However he only lost because Naruto pulled out the Rinnegan and surprised him (and yes we will discuss more about that next chapter along with Hinata's reaction) so it actually was luck that allowed them to win…well, that and Kakashi taking advantage of Kakuzu's momentary lapse of attention to substitute with a clone.


	14. Wave Goodbye

When Team 7 arrived back at Tazuna's house, tired and weary from their fight, Tsunami quickly sat them down and began to tend to their injuries.

"What happened?" she asked Kakashi as she bandaged his cuts.

"It seems Gato saw fit to hire some additional muscle," said Kakashi, "we had to fight with two more Missing-nin that came to deal with us and pave the way for Gato to finish off your father, Tsunami-san."

"You dealt with them, right?" asked Tsunami worriedly.

Kakashi nodded, "They won't be giving us any more trouble."

"It doesn't matter," yelled Inari as he walked out from behind the wall where he'd been eavesdropping, "I told you, heroes don't exist! Gato will just keep sending more Shinobi after you until you die."

"Inari!" scolded his mother.

"No," interrupted Kakashi, "he's right…well, half right. Gato won't stop, and with pockets as deep as his, he can afford to keep sending more Shinobi after us until we slip up and are killed. No, the only sure fire way to kill a snake is to cut off the head. Rest up team, tonight we go after Gato himself."

"Right," said Naruto, "we'll show him what we can do!"

"Don't you get it?" protested Inari, "Gato has an army! You can't win, so stop pretending to be heroes!"

"There's something you should know about heroes," said Sasuke as he picked up his kunai pouch, "heroes aren't just people that rise up to triumphantly stop the villain and save the day. Sometimes, all a person has to do is to stand up for what is right instead of bowing down and crying about all that is wrong in the world. The world is harsh, but sometimes, the smallest light can banish the darkness in life, and because of that, anyone can be a hero."

With that parting thought, the team began to prepare for the fight they would have that night, leaving Inari to think on what Sasuke had said.

xXsceneXx

"So those two weren't much use either," muttered Gato, "figures."

"Sir," said one of his subordinates, "from what our sources have gathered, the bridge builder is alone while building the bridge with only copies of one of the Genin helping him. Additionally, the copies are quite fragile and only one good hit is needed to dispel them."

"Excellent," said Gato, "then we attack tomorrow while Tazuna's hired bodyguards are licking their wounds."

xXsceneXx

Later, Hinata was trying to muster up the courage to ask Naruto about what had happened earlier in their fight. She was just about to knock on his door when a voice from behind her made her jump.

"Something the matter?" asked Kakashi from behind her.

"Eep!" squeaked the Hyuuga heiress, "K-K-Kakashi-sensei? I was…I mean…"

"You wanted to talk to Naruto about what happened during your fight with Kurashiya?" asked the Jonin seriously, getting a nod from the timid girl, "well," he sighed, "you can ask him what you want, but if he refuses to answer, you are not allowed to press him. This is an important secret, so if he refuses to answer, that's the end of it."

"Hai sensei," said Hinata.

Kakashi nodded and opened the door to Naruto's room, revealing the blond Genin sharpening some of his Kunai on a whetstone.

"Kakashi-sensei, Hinata-chan," said Naruto as he looked up, "what can I do for you?"

"Hinata-chan here has something she want's to talk to you about," said Kakashi, "it's about the strange ability you used in your last battle."

Naruto realized what they were talking about and glanced at Kakashi. Getting a nod from his sensei, he closed his eyes and took a deep breath before opening them to reveal the Rinnegan.

"Naruto-kun?!" gasped Hinata, "Those eyes…"

"I guess I'd better start from the beginning," said Naruto, "after Graduation, there was an…incident and I was hurt really bad. Nii-san had to donate blood in order for me to survive and something happened inside me, causing my eyes to manifest this Doujutsu."

"I recognize those eyes from the ancient scrolls in the Hyuuga Library," said Hinata, "they're the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths."

"Yeah," said Naruto, "they're called the Rinnegan and they're the reason I can use all five elements and the reason I could use that weird technique."

"Hinata," said Kakashi seriously, "I'm going to have to ask that you keep what you have just learned a secret from everyone, including your family. This has to be kept a secret for Naruto's protection. If unscrupulous elements found out about his ability, they might target him in order to take it for themselves."

"I understand, Kakashi-sensei," said Hinata, "thank you for trusting me Naruto-kun."

"Of course," said Naruto with a big grin, "we're teammates and friends, and if you can't trust your friends, then who can you trust?"

Hinata blushed before hurrying out of the room to avoid fainting again and to prepare her things for the assault that would happen that night. As she did so, Kakashi had to smile behind his mask, this team was truly living up to the reputation of all the Team 7s that had preceded them, including Team Minato.

xXsceneXx

As the sun set behind the clouds, four figures shot through the shadows toward the headquarters of the Gato Company, not making a sound as their sandaled feet tread upon the pavestones. When they arrived at the gates, two kunai flew through the air and embedded themselves in the throats of the guards, killing them without giving them a chance to cry out.

Kakashi made several seals with his hands, conveying a message to his team using ANBU sign language he had taught them prior to this mission, "Hinata, use your Byakugan to scan the compound and search for Gato."

Hinata nodded and activated her Doujutsu for a second, communicating with hand seals too, "I see several people and what seems to be Gato in a central chamber, but I won't be able to keep my eyes working for too long."

"That's fine," signed Kakashi, "keep formation as we move in."

The team nodded and entered the compound, closing the gate behind them as they ran through the halls. They noted that the halls were rather empty, with whatever thugs they encountered being quickly dealt with. Soon, the group arrived at a pair of massive oaken doors that were reinforced with iron and Kakashi nodded to Naruto, causing the Genin to use his new ability to blast them off their hinges.

"Shinra Tensei," said Naruto as he activated his Rinnegan and used its powers to blast the mighty doors off of their hinges.

"So you brats are the Konoha Shinobi that the pathetic bridge builder hired?" mused Gato, "I've got to say that I'm not impressed, even if you have Kakashi of the Sharingan teaching you. If you've come for my head, then I'm going to have to disappoint you."

Gato snapped his fingers and hidden doors opened all around the room, doors so well concealed in the walls and floors that the Byakugan, or at least Hinata's control over it, wouldn't be able to discern their presence, and Gato's entire army of thugs and mercenaries poured out and into the room with their weapons drawn.

"I hope you don't think you'll be getting out alive," said Gato.

"Manji formation," said Kakashi, "nobody breaks our circle. No Jutsu though, we don't want this place collapsing on our heads."

Team seven got into a circle with their backs facing inward as they got into ready stances. Hinata drew a Kunai and activated her Byakugan, Naruto prepared to make several Kage Bunshin, Kakashi made ready to reveal his Sharingan, and Sasuke drew a familiar katana from a sheathe on his back.

Yes, Sasuke had taken Kyuketsuki from Kurashiya's corpse and used it to replace his normal katana after the Missing-nin's demise. He now held it in a ready stance as he faced down the small army of thugs.

"You really shouldn't have killed the guards," said Gato, "when they didn't check in, I knew you had infiltrated my headquarters."

Gato silently turned on his heel and snapped his fingers.

"Kill them," said Gato as he calmly left the room.

With a roar the thugs descended on the team and battle ensued. Hinata attacked the thugs using her Kunai and Byakugan to cut down the thugs with surgical precision while Naruto created three clones to attack several thugs at once. Sasuke and Kakashi activated their Sharingan and began to cut down the thugs with their sword and kunai, respectively, but for every thug they cut down, two more seemed to take their place.

"You brats won't beat our numbers," said a thug as he swung a club at one of Naruto's clones, causing it to dispel.

"Don't underestimate us," said Naruto as he threw several shuriken at the thugs, which were blocked by their weapons.

"Sorry," said a thug as he leveled a crossbow at Sasuke, who was too busy holding off several goons to defend himself, "but you brats are finished."

"NII-SAN!" yelled Naruto before another thug punched him down.

The thug was about to pull the trigger, but a kunai was embedded into his head, causing him to fall to the ground.

"Don't get distracted, Naruto," said Kakashi as he resumed fighting, "We take care of each other."

"Right," said Naruto as he kicked the thug standing over him in a very sensitive spot, causing him to cringe and fall to the ground in agony before Naruto got up, "thanks, heads up Hinata-chan!"

Naruto threw a Kunai that nailed a thug that was trying to take advantage of Hinata being occupied with two goons in front of her, allowing her to finish one off.

"Arigato, Naruto-kun," said Hinata, " _Eight Trigrams Thirty Two Palms!_ "

Using Juuken, Hinata struck at her opponent's vitals with bursts of Chakra released from her palms, sending him flying to the ground as his body convulsed. The Hyuuga heiress breathed hard from the attack. The exhaustion from the previous days' fights was taking its toll on her now. Not only her though, the rest of the team was starting to feel the burden from the previous fights, even Naruto, though to a lesser extent, and it was showing here in this fight.

Suddenly, just as the fight began to become overwhelming, a crossbow bolt shot out and embedded itself in the chest of one of the thugs.

"You guys alright?" asked a voice.

When Team 7 turned around, their eyes widened at the sight before them and new hope began to bloom in their chests.

xXflashbackXx

As Inari ran through the streets, all he could think about was Team 7 fighting Gato's forces to save their home.

' _Sometimes, all a person has to do is to stand up for what is right instead of bowing down and crying_ ,'

' _We won't let this country stay in Gato's hands! We'll beat him down and save this land Dattebayo!_ '

' _Heroes huh?_ ' thought Inari as he ran, ' _Well, if anyone can be a hero, then I'll be one today._ '

"EVERYBODY!" yelled Inari

***play One Piece Movie 5 OST – Luffy Moukou***

The townsfolk looked up at Inari causing the boy to hop on a crate before speaking.

"Right now, four Shinobi from Konoha are fighting to free our home, even though they have been fighting battles three days in a row," said Inari, "we can't just let them fight on their own while we sit back here and hope for the best! We should stand up and fight alongside them! We need to fight back for this town! Just like Kaiza did! We won't let his sacrifice be in vain! We'll fight!"

The townsfolk looked at each other and back to Inari before nodding, seeing the logic in his speech.

"We won't let Gato push us around!" said a butcher as he grabbed a knife.

"We'll fight for our home!" said a carpenter as he grabbed his hammers.

"YEAH!" cheered the town.

xXflashback endXx

"Sorry we're late," said Inari as he stood at the head of the group of armed villagers as he held a Crossbow, "but the heroes always arrive at the last second, right?"

"Don't worry," said one villager, "we're here to fight too, so go and take care of that bastard Gato. We'll deal with the trash here."

Team 7 nodded and rushed after the short business tycoon while the final battle between the people of Nami no Kuni and Gato's hired muscle began.

***end song***

xXsceneXx

Gato was collecting various papers and documents from his office in preparation for a quick departure, should his thugs not be enough to stop the Konoha Shinobi. He knew he would have to pull out of this town, but planned to make sure the townsfolk would suffer as well. He would set up trading embargos using his connections in the business world and make it so that nobody would ever trade goods with this nation. He would make sure their home would be drained dry along with their hope.

Suddenly, the door to his office was blown off its hinges, kicking up a large dust cloud that obscured his vision.

***play: Gyakuten Meets Orchestra 2008 - The Steel Samurai Theme / Ooedo Sensei**

**TONOSAMAN no Uta***

As Gato squinted his eyes, he could make out four figures standing in where his ruined door once stood. His blood ran colder than a winter's night in Yuki no Kuni as the dust settled and the forms of Team 7 were revealed, all four of them having their eyes (or eye in Kakashi's case) blazing with their activated Doujutsu.

"Damn you Shinobi," ground out Gato, but the tycoon knew that this was the end.

As the four Shinobi descended on the crime lord, he knew at that point, why their kind were so sought after for their trade.

***end song***

The morning of Team 7's departure was met with bittersweet feelings. The townsfolk had escaped the battle with little casualties, but some were left recovering from their injuries. Luckily, now that Gato was gone, the bridge had been completed in record time, thanks in no small part to Naruto adding his Kage Bunshin to the workforce.

"You guys really were the heroes we needed," said Tazuna, "I'm sorry for what I said when I hired you. And for deceiving you."

"No," said Kakashi, "we weren't the heroes this time. As Sasuke said, a person just needs to stand up for what's right to be a hero. I think your grandson was the real hero this time."

"I guess you're right," said Tazuna as he ruffled his grandson's hair, "though you four showed us what we really needed to save our home. Hope."

"Well we'll be seeing you," said Naruto, "don't forget, you can be as strong as you want, Inari."

As the group left, the townsfolk looked over at the new bridge that was just about finished and Tazuna stroked his beard.

"I think something's missing here," said Tazuna, "Guys, get me a stone plate."

When traders and merchants would come to the great bridge, the first thing they would see upon entering Nami no Kuni, would be a great stone placard with the following inscription.

Here stands the Great Bridge of Heroes

Let it be a reminder of what we must never give up

Hope


	15. Seeking Instruction

Team 7 was currently waiting at the Training Ground for their Sensei to arrive. While they were waiting, they each were keeping busy with some hobbies they picked up. Sasuke was polishing and sharpening his new katana, Hinata was flowing through several forms that required her body to move like water flowing through a stream, and Naruto was practicing calligraphy on a scroll he had bought.

Kakashi had suggested they pick up some habits to help them cope with the burden of killing that came with their line of work. He also told them that he had done the same when he was their age and that was the reason he was so attached to the copy of Icha Icha he could be found reading. Accepting that explanation, the three Genin had sought out hobbies of their own, resulting in the pastimes they were taking part in now.

Their relaxation was broken when Kakashi appeared in front of them with a swirl of leaves indicating that he had used a Shunshin to arrive. The three Genin looked up from what they were doing upon his arrival and got to their feet.

"Good morning," said Kakashi cheerily, getting glares from his Genin team.

"It's afternoon actually," deadpanned Naruto, "we've been waiting all morning for you."

"Well at least you've been keeping busy," said Kakashi with an eye smile, "I've got some bad news though, I'll be busy with some Jonin business for the next few weeks, so I won't be around to train you three. Luckily, I think I've found some people to make sure that you three won't grow lax in your training."

Kakashi turned to Hinata, causing the girl to straighten up, "Hinata, after talking to your father about your skill with the Juuken and your Byakugan in our last mission, he has offered his help in perfecting that new style you're working on as a variant to the traditional technique."

Hinata's lavender eyes widened at that. The fact that her father was willing to offer his help in training was something she had not expected. She resolved not to misplace the faith he was putting in her.

Kakashi then turned to Sasuke and glanced at the sword he was holding at his side, which the Genin had been sure to take good care of since he picked it up from the site of their battle with the Akatsuki.

"Sasuke," said the Jonin, "since you seem to be serious about learning the ways of the sword, I've talked to an old colleague of mine and she's agreed to teach you a few things. Here's instructions on how to contact her."

Sasuke smirked at the prospect of getting Kenjutsu instruction from someone who knew their way around a sword. He was eager to learn how to properly use his new sword in battle.

"And finally you, Naruto-kun," said Kakashi, "a powerful Shinobi, who just so happens to be one of Konoha's greatest spymasters, will be in town soon. I'm sure he'd be more than thrilled to take you under his wing and teach you several new Jutsu. In fact, he's one of the Genin that was assigned to the Sandaime Hokage's team."

Naruto's eyes sparkled with eagerness at the thought of learning Jutsu from such a powerful Shinobi and they began to glass over as he imagined the possibilities.

' **Great,** ' sighed the Kyuubi, " **now he's fantasizing again.** "

"Well," said Kakashi, "I'll expect you three not to waste the next three weeks and, should you prove you've advanced enough in your training when I return, I might even have a surprise for you three. Ja-ne."

With that, Kakashi vanished in another swirl of leaves, leaving his Genin students stunned and excited about the weeks that would come, all of them wondering what kind of 'surprise' Kakashi would have in store if they were able to prove themselves.

xXsceneXx

When Kakashi arrived in the Hokage's Meeting Room, Hiruzen sighed and checked the clock on the wall before turning toward the perpetually late Jonin.

"So," said the Hokage before taking a drag from his pipe, "what's your excuse this time?"

"I was making sure my team would be kept occupied while I'd be busy with this project," said Kakashi, "I must have lost track of time."

The Shinobi in the room exchanged looks before one Jonin with spiky black hair and a beard pulled out a cigarette and placed it in his mouth, "At least your excuses are getting more believable."

Kakashi smirked behind his mask and reached over, lighting the tobacco stick with a quick burst of Katon Chakra, "That's because it was true, Asuma."

"If you are through," said Hiruzen, "we have business to discuss. I've called all of you here because of an important event that will be taking place soon, the Chunin Exams."

The Hokage lowered his pipe and looked over at the Jonin gathered with a serious gaze, "I know all of you have intentions of submitting your teams for the exams, but I will be holding off the final approval until this business is settled."

Hiruzen saw that the Jonin were going to object so he silenced them with a raise of his hand, "This business is of the upmost priority for the upcoming Exams and if not done properly, could have drastic results. The other Shinobi Villages have already submitted their Genin Teams for testing, but I am rightfully wary about several of them. Therefore, you all will be doing discrete background checks and information gathering on any and all foreign applicants BEFORE they arrive in Konoha. Know this, you are not allowed to share any of this knowledge, to your students, or to anyone that is not present in this room right now. Should I find that one of you did, that Shinobi will be harshly punished and his or her team will be instantly disqualified from entering the Exams. Do I make myself clear?"

Getting nods from the gathered Shinobi, Hiruzen placed several files onto his desk, "these are the information we have on the foreign Teams. Pick one and begin your research immediately. That is all."

xXsceneXx

That afternoon, Sasuke found himself walking through the town through the merchant district looking for the business listed in the directions Kakashi had given him when he told him about his Kenjutsu instructor. He was so caught up in wondering what kind of person would be teaching him how to use his new blade that he wasn't looking where he was going and walked into someone.

"Ow," he grunted as he picked himself off the ground.

"You alright, Gaki?" asked a voice and Sasuke looked up to see a purple haired lady wearing an open trench coat over a mesh shirt and a miniskirt while munching on a stick of Dango.

"Yeah," muttered Sasuke as he dusted his jacket off.

"What're you doing wandering around here?" asked the woman.

"I'm looking for someone named Yūgao Uzuki," said Sasuke as he glanced at the directions, "Kakashi-sensei said she could be found around here."

"You want to speak to me?" asked a female voice from behind Sasuke, nearly causing him to jump before spinning around to see a woman with long purple hair, wearing a sword on her back, "Let me guess, you're the kid Kakashi-senpai wanted me to train?"

Sasuke nodded and Yūgao gave him a once over, "You look like you've use a sword before, and that blade on your back is quality steel. Very well, meet me at Training Ground 27 tomorrow morning. Don't follow your sensei's example and be on time."

Sasuke nodded before leaving to go and find some dinner. Once he had left, the first woman tuned to look at Yūgao.

"Didn't think you were the type to take on students, Yu-chan," said the woman as she munched on her Dango.

"I owe Kakashi a favor or two, Anko," said Yūgao, "and according to him, the Uchiha boy shows some promise with Kenjutsu."

"Meh, whatever," said Anko as she finished her snack, "now, how are things going with Hayate? You two gonna tie the knot anytime soon?"

Yūgao was lucky that nobody she knew was there to see her blush and sputter at the Special Jonin.

xXsceneXx

While Sasuke was meeting with Yūgao, Naruto was heading to Ichiraku Ramen to get a light snack (translation: about a dozen bowls). He was eager to meet this new sensei of his, but ramen came first.

He had his priorities after all.

When he arrived at the familiar Ramen Stall, he was surprised to see a man with long white hair sitting on one of the stools with a bowl of miso ramen in front of him as he laughed with Teuchi.

"Teuchi-jii-san," said Naruto as he found a seat next to the new man, "I'd like four bowls miso, two shrimp, two chicken, and four beef."

"Hai, coming right up Naruto-kun," said Teuchi with a smile as he began preparing the noodles.

"You must really like your ramen, kid," said the man next to Naruto.

"Mm," nodded the blond Shinobi, "Ramen is the best."

"Heh," chuckled the man, "you remind me of an old friend. She liked ramen almost as much as you seem to."

"Well she should," said Naruto, "Ramen is the food of the gods!"

"Well said," said Teuchi as he placed Naruto's first two bowls down in front of him.

"What's your name, Gaki?" asked the man as Naruto began to dig into his meal.

"Naruto Uzumaki Uchiha," said Naruto as he smiled around his meal.

"Uchiha?" said the man in surprise.

"Yeah," said Naruto, "so, what's your name?"

"Me?" chuckled the man, "Well, let me tell you. I am Mt. Myōboku's Holy Master Sennin, the Toad Sage Jiraiya! Women swoon when they hear my name. Men wish…GAH!"

Jiraiya was cut off from his monologue when Ayame walked out and slammed her ladle onto his head.

"Don't do that around our customers," she sighed.

"Anyway kid," said Jiraiya as he put down money for his ramen, "judging by that headband, you must be one hell of a Shinobi."

"Yup," said Naruto, "and I'm gonna one day be Hokage!"

"So you think you have what it takes to take sensei's place?" asked Jiraiya.

"Sensei?" asked Naruto.

"Yup," said Jiraiya, "my sensei when I was a genin is now the Sandaime Hokage."

Suddenly Naruto jumped up and pointed at Jiraiya, "YOU!"

"Excuse me?" asked Jiraiya.

"You're the one Kakashi-sensei wanted to be my teacher!" exclaimed Naruto, "Please, teach me all you can, sensei!"

"Hmmm," smirked Jiraiya, ' _I want to teach him, especially if he's Minato and Kushina's kid, but let's see him squirm a bit._ '

"You know," said Jiraiya, "I am kind of busy, but maybe if you can prove to me you're not just all talk."

"I'll show you then!" said Naruto as he began to channel his chakra, but a swift chop to his head interrupted him.

"Finish your meal first, Gaki," said Jiraiya, "we can see how good you are tomorrow. Meet me in Training Ground 3 at noon."

With that, Jiraiya used Shunshin to depart (for the hot springs) and left Naruto to finish his ramen. As Naruto ate, he was unaware that, within his seal, the Kyuubi was contemplating.

" **The signs are all there,** " mused the nine-tailed Kitsune, " **perhaps I should have a talk with my current host. If he is the one father spoke of, he will need my full power, and that old pervert is the one who holds the key.** "

With that, the fox nodded and settled down in his cage for a nap.

 

 


	16. Strange Dealings

The next morning, Sasuke arrived bright and early at Training Ground 27, eager to begin training with his new sensei. Feeling the weight of Kyuketsuki on his back, he decided to polish and sharpen his blade again while waiting for his instructor to arrive.

"I see you know how to maintain a blade," said Yūgao's voice from behind Sasuke, nearly causing him to jump as he sharpened it with his whetstone, "good, that's one less thing I'll have to teach you."

Sasuke spun around and saw the Kunoichi leaning against a tree, "How do you keep sneaking up on me?"

"I'm a Shinobi," said Yūgao, "it's in the job description."

"So what are we doing first?" asked Sasuke.

"I want to see what I have to work with," said Yūgao, "so first, we're going to have a light spar."

"Alright," said Sasuke as he made to draw his sword, but was stopped when Yūgao tossed a bokken at his feet, "What's this?"

"Lesson one," said Yūgao, "unless you know what you're doing, a sword won't be any more useful than a cheese knife, so until I feel you're ready, you'll be training with that."

Sasuke scowled but picked up the wooden practice sword and got into his Kenjutsu stance as Yūgao drew a Bokken of her own and examined her student's form. The Uchiha heir shot at the Kunoichi, causing her to raise an eyebrow at his rash technique before sidestepping and smacking him on the back with her own weapon, causing him to fall flat on his face.

"Lesson two," said Yūgao, "charging straight in is a good way to get yourself killed. Now get up."

Sasuke pulled himself to his feet and got into his stance again, but this time, Yūgao stopped him, "You're off balance. Your weight is focused on your rear leg, and while that allows you to spring forward with more strength, it slows your ability to dodge. Evenly distribute your weight and remain light on your feet."

Sasuke nodded and adjusted his stance, getting a nod from the Kunoichi, "Good. Much better, now come at me again."

Sasuke did so and found that he had a better time moving and was lighter on his feet with the new stance. He was still knocked on his ass by a swing of Yūgao's bokken, but he could feel some improvement on his speed.

Eventually, Yūgao stopped him with a nod, satisfied with his current abilities.

"Very good," said the Kunoichi, "you have a long way to go, but you're not without promise. Meet me here every week at this time and we'll go over forms and technique."

"What am I supposed to do in the meantime?" asked Sasuke.

Yūgao smirked and tossed Sasuke several plain metal bracelets with kanji carved into them.

"What are these supposed to do?" asked the Uchiha.

"Put them on," prompted the Purple-haired Kunoichi, "one on each arm and leg."

Sasuke did so and Yūgao raised her hands into a Ram seal. Suddenly the Genin felt his limbs grow heavier and noticed his movements had become labored, as if he was trying to move while underwater.

"These training bands are etched with Gravity and Resistance seals," explained Yūgao, "they'll force you to work the muscles in your body, building your strength and speed. You are only to take them off when in a serious combat situation. Also, I have a regimen of exercises to help you build up your muscles, 50 pushups, 70 sit-ups, 40 squats, and a run around the village, once every day in the morning. You can forgo the run today, but I'd like you to do the other exercises when you get home."

Sasuke nodded and Yūgao vanished in a Shunshin, leaving Sasuke to slowly trudge back to his house in the village, fighting against the resistance that the seals put on his arms with a determined look.

xXsceneXx

Later that afternoon, Naruto was waiting at Training Ground 3, wondering when Jiraiya would arrive. He was working on his calligraphy when a shadow suddenly covered his scroll.

"You're late," said Naruto without looking up.

"You're quite good with that," said the old sage.

"Thanks," said Naruto as he put away his brush and ink, "so what are we going to do for my training?"

"I have a few ideas on what we can do," said Jiraiya, "and I've heard a lot about your previous missions from Sensei. So, is it true that you've acquired the Rinnegan?"

Naruto glanced at him hesitantly, but since it Kakashi-sensei and the Sandaime seemed to trust this man, he closed his eyes and activated his Doujutsu.

"So it's true," said Jiraiya, "well kid, it looks like you've got the right sensei. I happen to know a few things about those eyes, and I might be able to teach you some cool Jutsu that you can use."

"Really?" said Naruto in excitement, his irritation at the Sage's lateness now forgotten.

Jiraiya nodded, "Yup, I didn't get to be as skilled as I am now without learning a lot of cool jutsu. Want to see one?"

"Of course!" said Naruto as he deactivated his Rinnegan.

"Watch closely," said Jiraiya as he went through the Tiger, Hare, Boar, and Dog seals, " _Doton: Doryūheki!_ "

The Toad Sage slammed his hands into the ground and a wall of stone erupted in front of him, causing Naruto's eyes to go wide.

"Awesome!" said Naruto, "Let me try!"

Naruto quickly made the seals for the Jutsu and mimicked the Sage's actions, but unfortunately, his chakra control still needed some work. Luckily, the Jutsu worked, but there was a slight side effect…

"Damn," said Jiraiya as he stared at the giant stone monolith Naruto had created, "we're gonna need to work on that, Gaki."

Naruto scowled at the jab at his abysmal Chakra control, "It's not my fault I have too much Chakra."

Feeling sorry for him, the Sannin pulled out a scroll and tossed it to Naruto, "Here, maybe this Jutsu will help."

Naruto read through the scroll several times, making sure he understood the technique, before getting up, "Ok! Let me try."

"Wait a minute…" began Jiraiya as he tried to stop the blonde. After all, it would take an immense amount of chakra to successfully use the jutsu here, where there was no water nearby to use in the technique. But before he could stop him, Naruto finished the hand-seals.

" _Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!_ " yelled Naruto before he spat out a torrent of water that formed into a serpentine dragon that proceeded to slam into and  _topple_  the monolith he had created before splashing down onto the ground.

"Wow," breathed Naruto, "I feel a bit winded from that."

As Jiraiya watched the blonde Genin, he had to make a conscious effort to pick his jaw up off the ground before rubbing his eyes in shock and pinching himself to make sure he didn't just hallucinate the whole thing. He just saw a GENIN perform a B-Ranked Suiton Jutsu WITHOUT a nearby source of water and he claimed to only be 'a bit winded?!' The Sannin didn't think even Tobirama Senju was that skilled as a Genin, and he was hailed as the best of the best in terms of Suiton techniques. He knew that Naruto would have immense Chakra reserves due to his status as a Jinchuuriki and due to the fact that he was an Uzumaki, but this was just ridiculous!

"Well," said Jiraiya, "it looks like we'll need to work on Chakra control, but Jutsu wise, you should absorb these like a sponge. Firstly though, has the Kyuubi been speaking to you recently?"

"Not recently," said Naruto, "but there was that time in Nami no Kuni where he taught me a technique for my Rinnegan that ended up saving our lives."

"The Kyuubi  _taught_  you a new technique?" asked Jiraiya, "Did it ask for anything in return? Did it ask for you to release it?"

"Not really," said Naruto, "he just told me how to do the technique which allowed me to use it to save my friends."

"Hmmm," said Jiraiya, "Naruto, can you show me the seal on your stomach?"

Wondering what was going on, yet trusting the man, Naruto lifted up his shirt to reveal the Kyuubi's seal. Leaning in, the old seal master inspected the seal that kept the mightiest of the Bijū sealed away. What surprised him was that the seal was of an advanced Uzumaki Clan design, as opposed to something he or Minato would be able to whip up.

As the Sage inspected the Ten Trigram seal, the Seal's occupant decided that now would be a good time to open a dialogue with his jailor about some important details.

" **Oi Gaki,** " growled the Kyuubi from Naruto's mind, " **we need to talk.** "

Naruto suddenly found himself standing ankle deep in the water flowing through his sewer of a mindscape staring at the Kyuubi's cage.

" **Glad you could make it,** " said the fox as he looked down at Naruto.

"What do you want, Kyuubi?" growled Naruto, "And if you want me to set you free, I've got two words and you won't like them. Here's a hint, the first one starts with a F."

" **Tch, insolent brat,** " grumbled the Kyuubi, " **I didn't call you here to get you to let me raze your village to the ground.** "

"Then why  _am_  I here?" asked Naruto.

" **I'd like to make a deal with you,** " said Kyuubi before interrupting Naruto as he made to protest, " **you won't have to remove the seal or anything. I'd just like to be able to have a bit more freedom to see the world around you.** "

"So what do you expect me to do about that?" asked Naruto as he crossed his arms.

" **Let me have control for two minutes,** " said the Kyuubi, " **I'd like to talk to the seal master that's going to be training you.** "

"Fine," said Naruto, "two minutes, and if I see you doing anything I don't like, I'm cutting the connection."

The Kitsune nodded and the two of them closed their eyes to return to the physical world.

xXsceneXx

Jiraiya watched Naruto warily upon finishing his examination. He had noticed the boy's eyes become glassy and distant and figured he was talking with his prisoner, so he mentally prepared several suppression seals to use if the fox tried to escape. Because of this, he was noticeably and understandably on edge when Naruto's blue irises became blood red and his pupils became vulpine slits.

" **Ah,** " said the Kyuubi with Naruto's voice, " **I'd almost forgotten what the sun felt like.** "

"Who are you," asked Jiraiya, "and what have you done with Naruto?"

" **I think that _who_  I am is obvious, human,**" said the Kyuubi.

"Kyuubi," growled Jiraiya as he made ready to fight.

" **Calm down, I don't want to fight…at least, not today,** " growled the Kyuubi, " **I'm here to offer a deal in regards to the brat's training.** "

"Why should I make any deals with you?" asked Jiraiya, "You tried to destroy Konoha."

" **First of all, I was being controlled,** " huffed the Kyuubi, " **if anything, I would have wanted to get as far away from you lot so I could remain free. Secondly, I happen to have an advantage you could use in your training of the brat: I knew the original holder of those eyes and thus could teach him several new tricks for them.** "

"How do I know you can be trusted?" asked Jiraiya.

" **You don't,** " said the Kyuubi with a grin, " **but that's the life of a Shinobi.** "

"What do you want in exchange?" asked Jiraiya, "There has to be a catch."

" **What I want is simple,** " said the Bijū, " **I'd like you to modify the seal so I can see and feel more of the outside world from within the brat. It is annoyingly boring sitting in that cage day after day.** "

"Do I have your word that you won't try to break free?" asked Jiraiya.

" **Of course not,** " said the Kyuubi with a smirk, " **but I do have an interest in this brat, and thus need him alive.** "

Jiraiya was about to retort, but Naruto's eyes turned back to normal, and the Genin looked around curiously.

"Jiraiya-sensei," said Naruto, "what did the fox want?"

The Sage sighed, "Show me the seal again, Naruto-kun. It looks like I'm going to be getting a bit of help in your training. On the bright side, I promise that you will be a force to be reckoned with when we're done."

Naruto nodded with a huge grin and Jiraiya went back to inspecting the seal, wondering if Naruto might just be the child the Great Toad Elder foresaw.

 

 


	17. Tests of Intelligence

The room was silent for a moment as they tried to process what Ibiki just said, and when it finally sank in, the Genin were quite vocal about their confusion.

"What the hell was that?" yelled Kiba.

"What about the 10th question?" asked a Kusa Shinobi.

"There was no 10th question," said Ibiki, "well, not in the same terms of the other nine, however."

Seeing that the assembled Genin were still at a loss, the Jonin smirked and walked forward.

"These Exams are to test if you are ready to truly become Chunin level Shinobi, and that requires more than book smarts and luck," said the man, "the first questions were there to simulate an environment where you would have to covertly gather information and where getting caught could mean death or worse. The 10th question was also important, but not in the same way as the others."

Ibiki then removed his bandana, revealing a head covered in scars and signs that showed he had been tortured and injured several times over. The display made more than a few students flinch back.

"There will be a time when you will be faced with a choice, complete a mission where you will almost certainly die, or run and save yourself," said Ibiki, "as Chunin, you can't just choose to run and leave when the going gets tough. Your villages will depend on you, and you can't let them down just because you're scared. You will face these scenarios as Chunin, and the way you face them shows your strength. I encourage you to push forward in the tests to come."

Suddenly, the window on the wall shattered as a large object smashed through before unfurling to reveal a banner that was quickly pinned to the wall by several kunai, revealing an attractive Kunoichi wearing a trench coat over a mesh shirt and a miniskirt, with her purple hair tied up in a pineapple style. She was leaning against the banner that read, 'The Sexy Exam Proctor Anko Mitarashi.'

"Alright you maggots," said the woman, "get ready because its time for the second phase of the Chunin Exams."

"Anko," sighed Ibiki as he replaced his bandanna, "you're early."

"Whatever Ibiki," chuckled the Special Jonin as she looked over the assembled Genin, "36 brats left? You're getting soft if you're letting this many through."

"Maybe," said Ibiki, "or maybe this bunch is made of tougher stuff than the usual lot."

"Heh," chuckled Anko, "I'll thin the herd before soon enough. Follow me everyone. We're gonna get the next Exam underway."

xXsceneXx

The Genin were led to a large forest that was fenced off with signs warning people about the dangers within, along with the sounds of fearsome animal echoing through the gates.

"Welcome to the location of the Second Phase of the Chunin Exams," said Anko, "Training Ground 44, also known as The Forest of Death."

The gathered Genin glanced fearfully at the forest, wondering what kinds of things lived inside that would warrant such a title. Anko saw the looks on their faces as smirked. They were afraid, and rightly so. Now was a good time to begin things.

"Before I explain the Test," said Anko, "I need you to fill out some forms."

"What kinds of forms?" asked a Suna Shinobi wearing an outfit that made him resemble a cat with war paint on his face.

"Oh, just some wavers stating that Konoha is in no way responsible if you end up dying during your time in the forest," said Anko casually.

"Dying?" asked Sakura nervously.

"Of course," said Anko, "it's called The Forest of Death for a reason. There's more behind these gates then just trees, there are a lot of dangerous creatures that would love to have you as a snack."

Seeing that the group was now hesitating, she bared her teeth in a grin and held up the papers, "You don't have to sign the forms though, but if you don't, your test ends here and you'll be sent home."

Several Genin chickened out and left, but the majority remained and signed the wavers, handing them back to the Jonin once they were done. Once everyone present had finished handing in their papers to the Chunin present, Anko stepped forward and held up two scrolls.

"These," said Anko, "are the Heaven and Earth scrolls. All of the teams here will be given either one or the other and will be required to present both to the proctor at the end of the exam if they have any hopes of passing. In addition to the two scrolls being handed out, a third is hidden in various spots of the forest. You will need to collect all three and bring them to the tower in the center of the forest, but should you open any of the scrolls, you will be disqualified immediately. This phase will last for the next five days."

"What!" exclaimed Choji upon hearing that, "What about food and water?"

"Oh there are plenty of edible plants and animals in the forest along with a freshwater spring," said Anko dismissively with a wave of her hand, "just watch out for the ones that want to eat you too. This phase will test your ability at asset retrieval and protection, things that many Chunin will have to deal with on their missions. Any more questions? No? Good, let's get started."

The teams lined up and were given scrolls by the Chunin proctors and told to stand by the four gates leading into the dark forest. Once everyone was ready, Anko snapped her fingers, causing the gates to spring open and the Genin rushed into the forest, beginning the next phase of the Chunin Exams.

xXsceneXx

Team 7 ran through the forest for several minutes before they came to stop in a clearing. Naruto then made several Kage Bunshin that positioned themselves at points around the perimeter acting as sentries and nodded to Hinata.

" _Byakugan!_ " said Hinata as she activated her Doujutsu and used it to scan the area around them, "We're safe, for now."

"Good," said Sasuke, "then here's the plan."

He then took out three normal scrolls and decorated them to look like the Earth Scroll they had received, "should we encounter enemy teams, we'll give them one of these in exchange for safe passage until we can prepare a stronghold to serve as a base. Once we do so, we'll begin systematic excursions until we locate the remaining two scrolls we need."

"That sounds like a good plan, nii-san," said Naruto.

"We'll also need a way to identify each other if enemy Shinobi use Henge against us," said Sasuke.

"It would have to be something that is someone else wouldn't be able to copy or fake," said Hinata.

"Right," said Sasuke, "maybe a code or a set of counter phrases."

"Why don't we just use our Doujutsu?" asked Naruto, "I mean, they can't be copied by a Henge, right?"

"That's…actually a good idea," said Sasuke.

"Hey," said Naruto, "don't sound so surprised-ttebayo."

"It's a good plan," said Hinata, "and you're right that nobody else would be able to fake them."

"Right," said Sasuke, "then let's get moving and find a good location to set up camp."

Hinata nodded and reactivated her Byakugan to act as their scout as they leapt through the trees.

xXsceneXx

It was close to evening when Team 7 found a suitable campsite, a large tree with a cave built into the roots that were clear of any signs of wildlife and close enough to one of the rivers to provide them with safe access to fresh water if needed. The trio quickly got to work setting up traps and defenses around the area in order to keep out any unwanted guests and, once done, they sat down for a quick meal from their ration packs.

"So," said Sasuke as he took a bite out of a protein bar, "first, let's get in a quick rest before we begin our scouting parties. Naruto, I'd like you to send out some Kage Bunshin to serve as scouts while we're resting so enemies won't catch us by surprise."

"Right," said Naruto, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

Several dozen copies of the blond appeared in a poof of smoke that filled the area. The Bunshin nodded to each other before shooting off in all directions, leaving the original with his teammates.

"Once Naruto's Bunshin find another team or an Ocean Scroll, then we head out," said Sasuke.

"Who died and made you captain?" joked Naruto.

"I don't know," said Sasuke with a smirk, "maybe the fact that I got better grades than you through the academy?"

"Teme!" growled Naruto, "You know that was deliberate!"

"Then how about Janken?" asked Sasuke, "Winner take all?"

"Fine with me," said Naruto as he activated his Rinnegan.

"Then let's go!" said Sasuke as he activated his Sharingan.

Hinata couldn't help but sigh at the antics of the two brothers as they competed.

xXsceneXx

Meanwhile, in another part of the Forest of Death, a Kusa Kunoichi smirked to herself as she stood over three corpses and licked her lips with a rather long tongue.

"A pity," she said, "you three were rather disappointing. Fortunately, the one I am looking for is here as well."

Leaping through the trees, the Kunoichi made several seals with her hands before coming to a stop and landing on the ground.

"I look forward to our meeting, Sasuke-kun. I hope you can give me what I was unable to take from your brother," she laughed, " _Kuchiyose no Jutsu!_ "

Slamming her hand into the ground, the Kunoichi smirked as a seal emerged and several massive snakes appeared in poofs of smoke. The serpents then shot off, heading to find their master's target.

**To be continued…**

 


	18. Into the Dark Forest

The room was silent for a moment as they tried to process what Ibiki just said, and when it finally sank in, the Genin were quite vocal about their confusion.

"What the hell was that?" yelled Kiba.

"What about the 10th question?" asked a Kusa Shinobi.

"There was no 10th question," said Ibiki, "well, not in the same terms of the other nine, however."

Seeing that the assembled Genin were still at a loss, the Jonin smirked and walked forward.

"These Exams are to test if you are ready to truly become Chunin level Shinobi, and that requires more than book smarts and luck," said the man, "the first questions were there to simulate an environment where you would have to covertly gather information and where getting caught could mean death or worse. The 10th question was also important, but not in the same way as the others."

Ibiki then removed his bandana, revealing a head covered in scars and signs that showed he had been tortured and injured several times over. The display made more than a few students flinch back.

"There will be a time when you will be faced with a choice, complete a mission where you will almost certainly die, or run and save yourself," said Ibiki, "as Chunin, you can't just choose to run and leave when the going gets tough. Your villages will depend on you, and you can't let them down just because you're scared. You will face these scenarios as Chunin, and the way you face them shows your strength. I encourage you to push forward in the tests to come."

Suddenly, the window on the wall shattered as a large object smashed through before unfurling to reveal a banner that was quickly pinned to the wall by several kunai, revealing an attractive Kunoichi wearing a trench coat over a mesh shirt and a miniskirt, with her purple hair tied up in a pineapple style. She was leaning against the banner that read, 'The Sexy Exam Proctor Anko Mitarashi.'

"Alright you maggots," said the woman, "get ready because its time for the second phase of the Chunin Exams."

"Anko," sighed Ibiki as he replaced his bandanna, "you're early."

"Whatever Ibiki," chuckled the Special Jonin as she looked over the assembled Genin, "36 brats left? You're getting soft if you're letting this many through."

"Maybe," said Ibiki, "or maybe this bunch is made of tougher stuff than the usual lot."

"Heh," chuckled Anko, "I'll thin the herd before soon enough. Follow me everyone. We're gonna get the next Exam underway."

xXsceneXx

The Genin were led to a large forest that was fenced off with signs warning people about the dangers within, along with the sounds of fearsome animal echoing through the gates.

"Welcome to the location of the Second Phase of the Chunin Exams," said Anko, "Training Ground 44, also known as The Forest of Death."

The gathered Genin glanced fearfully at the forest, wondering what kinds of things lived inside that would warrant such a title. Anko saw the looks on their faces as smirked. They were afraid, and rightly so. Now was a good time to begin things.

"Before I explain the Test," said Anko, "I need you to fill out some forms."

"What kinds of forms?" asked a Suna Shinobi wearing an outfit that made him resemble a cat with war paint on his face.

"Oh, just some wavers stating that Konoha is in no way responsible if you end up dying during your time in the forest," said Anko casually.

"Dying?" asked Sakura nervously.

"Of course," said Anko, "it's called The Forest of Death for a reason. There's more behind these gates then just trees, there are a lot of dangerous creatures that would love to have you as a snack."

Seeing that the group was now hesitating, she bared her teeth in a grin and held up the papers, "You don't have to sign the forms though, but if you don't, your test ends here and you'll be sent home."

Several Genin chickened out and left, but the majority remained and signed the wavers, handing them back to the Jonin once they were done. Once everyone present had finished handing in their papers to the Chunin present, Anko stepped forward and held up two scrolls.

"These," said Anko, "are the Heaven and Earth scrolls. All of the teams here will be given either one or the other and will be required to present both to the proctor at the end of the exam if they have any hopes of passing. In addition to the two scrolls being handed out, a third is hidden in various spots of the forest. You will need to collect all three and bring them to the tower in the center of the forest, but should you open any of the scrolls, you will be disqualified immediately. This phase will last for the next five days."

"What!" exclaimed Choji upon hearing that, "What about food and water?"

"Oh there are plenty of edible plants and animals in the forest along with a freshwater spring," said Anko dismissively with a wave of her hand, "just watch out for the ones that want to eat you too. This phase will test your ability at asset retrieval and protection, things that many Chunin will have to deal with on their missions. Any more questions? No? Good, let's get started."

The teams lined up and were given scrolls by the Chunin proctors and told to stand by the four gates leading into the dark forest. Once everyone was ready, Anko snapped her fingers, causing the gates to spring open and the Genin rushed into the forest, beginning the next phase of the Chunin Exams.

xXsceneXx

Team 7 ran through the forest for several minutes before they came to stop in a clearing. Naruto then made several Kage Bunshin that positioned themselves at points around the perimeter acting as sentries and nodded to Hinata.

" _Byakugan!_ " said Hinata as she activated her Doujutsu and used it to scan the area around them, "We're safe, for now."

"Good," said Sasuke, "then here's the plan."

He then took out three normal scrolls and decorated them to look like the Earth Scroll they had received, "should we encounter enemy teams, we'll give them one of these in exchange for safe passage until we can prepare a stronghold to serve as a base. Once we do so, we'll begin systematic excursions until we locate the remaining two scrolls we need."

"That sounds like a good plan, nii-san," said Naruto.

"We'll also need a way to identify each other if enemy Shinobi use Henge against us," said Sasuke.

"It would have to be something that is someone else wouldn't be able to copy or fake," said Hinata.

"Right," said Sasuke, "maybe a code or a set of counter phrases."

"Why don't we just use our Doujutsu?" asked Naruto, "I mean, they can't be copied by a Henge, right?"

"That's…actually a good idea," said Sasuke.

"Hey," said Naruto, "don't sound so surprised-ttebayo."

"It's a good plan," said Hinata, "and you're right that nobody else would be able to fake them."

"Right," said Sasuke, "then let's get moving and find a good location to set up camp."

Hinata nodded and reactivated her Byakugan to act as their scout as they leapt through the trees.

xXsceneXx

It was close to evening when Team 7 found a suitable campsite, a large tree with a cave built into the roots that were clear of any signs of wildlife and close enough to one of the rivers to provide them with safe access to fresh water if needed. The trio quickly got to work setting up traps and defenses around the area in order to keep out any unwanted guests and, once done, they sat down for a quick meal from their ration packs.

"So," said Sasuke as he took a bite out of a protein bar, "first, let's get in a quick rest before we begin our scouting parties. Naruto, I'd like you to send out some Kage Bunshin to serve as scouts while we're resting so enemies won't catch us by surprise."

"Right," said Naruto, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

Several dozen copies of the blond appeared in a poof of smoke that filled the area. The Bunshin nodded to each other before shooting off in all directions, leaving the original with his teammates.

"Once Naruto's Bunshin find another team or an Ocean Scroll, then we head out," said Sasuke.

"Who died and made you captain?" joked Naruto.

"I don't know," said Sasuke with a smirk, "maybe the fact that I got better grades than you through the academy?"

"Teme!" growled Naruto, "You know that was deliberate!"

"Then how about Janken?" asked Sasuke, "Winner take all?"

"Fine with me," said Naruto as he activated his Rinnegan.

"Then let's go!" said Sasuke as he activated his Sharingan.

Hinata couldn't help but sigh at the antics of the two brothers as they competed.

xXsceneXx

Meanwhile, in another part of the Forest of Death, a Kusa Kunoichi smirked to herself as she stood over three corpses and licked her lips with a rather long tongue.

"A pity," she said, "you three were rather disappointing. Fortunately, the one I am looking for is here as well."

Leaping through the trees, the Kunoichi made several seals with her hands before coming to a stop and landing on the ground.

"I look forward to our meeting, Sasuke-kun. I hope you can give me what I was unable to take from your brother," she laughed, " _Kuchiyose no Jutsu!_ "

Slamming her hand into the ground, the Kunoichi smirked as a seal emerged and several massive snakes appeared in poofs of smoke. The serpents then shot off, heading to find their master's target.

**To be continued…**

 


	19. A Path in the Dark

As Team 7 leapt through the trees of the Forest of Death, they wondered if any of their fellow Konoha Genin were making progress with locating the two scrolls that they needed to pass the exams. Naruto had sent out several dozen clones to search for the hiding place of the Ocean scroll while the Original and his teammates scouted for other teams that would hopefully have the other scroll they needed. They had been searching for two days now and unfortunately, they hadn't had a lot of luck.

"Damnit," sighed Naruto as the group came to a stop in a clearing near their campsite, "still nothing. I'd have thought that we'd have found something by now."

"Your Bunshin haven't had any luck either?" asked Sasuke.

"Not yet," said Naruto, "it's like they actually  _don't_  want us to find the third scroll."

"Wouldn't that defeat the purpose of the exam?" asked Hinata.

"I guess…" began Naruto before he felt the memories of a clone come back to him as it was dispelled, "wait, I think one of my clones just located a scroll!"

The other two gathered around him excitedly upon hearing that news. Hopefully they would be able to get out of this forest soon.

"Are you sure, Naruto?" asked Sasuke.

"Well," said Naruto, "my clones found a small shrine-like structure with a box that looked big enough to hold one of the scrolls, but it was dispelled by a wild animal before it could get a good look."

"Well," said Sasuke, "it's a good place to start looking. Lead the way."

Naruto nodded and the three Genin began to leap through the trees toward where Naruto's clones had seen the possible location of their goal. Unbeknownst to them, a pair of golden eyes with slits for pupils watched them as they departed before a large serpentine shape streaked through the forest after them, keeping to the shadows as it streaked through the gloom.

xXsceneXx

"Well," said Sasuke as the group observed their target from a distance, "this does look promising."

Team 7 had traveled nonstop through the forest for nearly an hour before they came upon the shrine-like setting that Naruto's Kage Bunshin had discovered. It was a small pedestal with a chest carved completely out of the same stone that made up its stand. Surrounding the 'shrine' were two large scorpions that were circling dangerously.

Now this made them pause for a second, because when I said the scorpions were large, I meant that each one was the size of a small car with razor sharp claws and stingers that were covered in barbs dripping with venom. One would understand why the three Genin were hesitant to venture any closer.

Anyway…

"So what's the plan?" asked Naruto, "just one of those things was enough to take out my clones, so I'd really rather not find out what two could do."

"I don't think we could take both of them," said Sasuke, "sure we could probably incapacitate them, but I don't want to risk finding out how lethal that venom is."

As if to reinforce his point, some venom dripped from one of the scorpion's stingers, withering away the grass it landed on and leaving a slight burn on the dirt as it was absorbed.

"Right," said Naruto, "so how do we get to the shrine then?"

"Do we have to get to the shrine?" asked Hinata, causing the two boys to look at her.

"It's kind of a given, isn't it?" said Sasuke, "We have to get past the Scorpions if we want to get the scroll. We can't just whistle and call it to us."

"Um," said Hinata, "can't Naruto-kun just use his Rinnegan to call the chest to us like he did to the sword in Nami no Kuni?"

The woods were silent except for the legs of the scorpions and the cawing of some crows.

"I am an idiot," muttered Sasuke, "Naruto, never let her go."

Naruto and Hinata blushed and stammered denials before Sasuke cut them off.

"We'll talk about it later," said Sasuke, "can you get that box?"

"I think so nii-san," said Naruto, "give me a second."

Naruto reached out a hand toward the stone chest and activated his Doujutsu, feeling for the abilities he awakened in Nami no Kuni.

" _Banshō Ten'in_ ," said Naruto as he used the Rinnegan's power over gravity to lift the chest up and pull it toward him.

At first, it seemed that everything was going to go perfectly fine, but suddenly, one of the scorpions noticed the floating chest and knocked it to the ground with a claw, causing the stone to break apart to reveal a blue scroll with the kanji for Ocean written on it.

"Damnit," swore Naruto.

Unfortunately, his little outburst was loud enough to catch the attention of the two scorpions and they turned toward the three Genin, hissing angrily as they snapped their pincers.

"I'm so going to kill you later," grumbled Sasuke as he glared at his younger brother.

"Sorry," said Naruto.

"Just get the scroll!" sighed Sasuke.

"Right," said Naruto, " _Banshō Ten'in!_ "

Naruto tried to call upon the power of his Rinnegan to call the scroll to him, but was surprised and confused when the scroll didn't even wiggle on the ground.

"Any time now!" said Sasuke.

"It's not working for some reason!" protested Naruto, "let me try again!  _Banshō Ten'in!_ "

This time, the scroll lifted off the ground and floated over to the group, landing in Naruto's open hand.

"Why didn't it work before?" asked Naruto.

Before anyone could answer however, the scorpions let out a shrill cry and began to charge at the three Genin, snapping their pincers angrily.

"Run for it!" yelled Sasuke and the three members of Team 7 turned tail and ran for their lives with the scorpions right behind them.

xXsceneXx

"Why are they still chasing us?" yelled Naruto as the three Genin ran from the scorpions.

"Maybe that's part of the test?" offered Hinata as she dodged a tree root.

"Test or not, we can't just keep running!" said Sasuke.

Suddenly, one of the scorpions that had gotten close enough shot its tail forward, aiming to impale the Genin. The three teens were barely able to twist and roll out of the way, but were quickly surrounded now that they weren't running.

"Right," muttered Sasuke as he drew Kyuketsuki, "new plan, we kick their asses."

"Now that," said Naruto with a smirk, "is a plan."

Hinata nodded and turned to face a scorpion that was bearing down on them, getting into a Juuken stance, " _Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!_ "

The Hyuuga heiress thrust her palm forward, sending a blast of air in the form of a vacuum shell that slammed into the large arachnid, knocking it back several feet. The scorpion reacted angrily and shot a burst of corrosive venom from its barbs at Hinata, but luckily she was saved when Naruto used his powers to pull her out of harm's way, ending with her landing in his arms.

"Th-thank you," said Hinata before the two of them blushed and jumped apart.

"Flirt later!" said Sasuke as he parried a strike from a pincer with his blade, "Survive now!"

"Right," said Naruto as he moved his hands into the jutsu for a familiar Jutsu, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

Several copies of the blond poofed into existence and attacked the scorpion alongside Hinata while one held back and made several hand seals with the original.

" _Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!_ " said the clone before spitting out a torrent of water that took the form of a dragon.

" _Raiton: Jibashi!_ " said the original as he released a stream of lightning from his hands that struck the dragon, " _Konbijutsu: Raisuiryūdan!_ "

The Water Dragon, now charged with electricity, slammed into the first scorpion, sending it flying as the lightning fried it and the water pressure fractured its shell.

Meanwhile, Sasuke had his Sharingan active and was using it to dodge the scorpion's attacks as he tried to break through its shell with his sword. He wasn't really having a lot of luck and was knocked to the ground as the scorpion's claw slashed across his shirt, knocking him to the ground with a cut on his chest.

"Damnit," growled Sasuke as he touched a hand to his chest and saw the blood.

He grabbed his sword and used it to push himself to his feet, not caring that the blood on his hand was dripping onto the blade until he felt a spike of chakra from the blade and the metal edge erupted with blue lightning.

"What?" he said in shock before smirking, "Hmm, I can use this."

Sasuke leapt into the air and brought his lightning covered blade down on the carapace covering the arachnid's body, the lightning enhanced blade piercing through this time and impaling the beast through its heart. Suddenly, the beast's tail whipped forward with the last of its strength and stabbed Sasuke through the stomach, sending him flying back as the beast went limp.

"NII-SAN!" yelled Naruto in horror as he and Hinata rushed over, "Hang in there! Hinata-chan, is there anything we can do?"

Hinata shook her head frantically, "I don't know any Medical Ninjutsu and the scorpion venom is spreading."

"Nii-san," said Naruto sadly as he began to cry.

" ** _Tch,_** " said the Kyuubi from Naruto's mindscape, " ** _dry your eyes, Gaki. He's not dead yet._** "

"What do you mean?" shot back Naruto, "How can I help him?"

" ** _You forget that you bear the eyes of the Rikudō Sennin,_** " said the Kyuubi, " ** _as much as I dislike that human and his family's eyes, I know what it's like to lose family, so listen and listen well._** "

"So the great Kyuubi does have a soft side," chuckled Naruto.

" ** _Tch, don't even think about it,_** " snarled Kyuubi, " ** _I'm still the strongest of the Bijū who's tails level mountains and cause tsunamis when they strike._** "

"Of course," said Naruto.

" ** _Then listen carefully…_** "

Hinata watched as Naruto's eyes glazed over and she assumed he was speaking to the Kyuubi, but she wasn't sure why. She glanced at Sasuke and felt completely useless. If only she had known more about Medical Ninjutsu, she might have been able to help Sasuke. It wouldn't have been extremely hard to learn either, due to her Byakugan and the amount chakra control that she needed to use the Juuken techniques.

No more, she resolved. Once they survive this exam, she would push herself to stop being the weak girl that her father looked at with disappointment. She would become strong so she could stand alongside her two teammates.

Suddenly, Naruto's eyes morphed into the Rinnegan and he took a deep breath. Purple flames erupted on the ground behind him from which a large…thing, which resembled a large head decked out in semi regal clothes, emerged. The upturned shirt collar that covered the head's mouth unbuttoned and the thing opened its maw wide. Before Hinata could say anything, Naruto picked up his brother's body and stepped into the mouth, allowing it to close behind them.

Once Hinata got over her shock, she opened her mouth to call out to them, but was cut off by the mouth on the head opening to allow Naruto and Sasuke to step out unharmed.

"Naruto-kun, Sasuke-san, what just happened?" asked the Hyuuga heiress.

"I'm glad that worked," said Naruto, "apparently, I can summon this thing, whatever it is, to heal people if needed. Luckily, Nii-san wasn't too far gone and I was able to use it on him."

"You never cease to amaze, Naruto," said Sasuke, "now let's get back to camp with this scroll."

"My my," said a sinister voice, causing the three genin to spin around in surprise, "this is quite the catch. All three of the Great Doujutsu right here in front of me."

A Kunoichi wearing the attire of a Kusagakure Shinobi stepped out of the shadows wearing a smirk on her face. Team 7 was instantly on alert and slid into ready stances.

"I see the three of you have procured an Ocean Scroll," said the Kunoichi, "and since I believe you have an Earth Scroll already, all you need is a Heaven Scroll, which I happen to have right here."

The Kunoichi held up a white scroll with the Kanji for Heaven written on it, but before the Konoha team could react, she opened her mouth and swallowed it.

"Now then," said the Kunoichi, "I would like if the three of you came willingly, but I could make do with just harvesting your eyes for later. Now which will it be?"

"I don't know who you are," said Naruto, "but you're not taking anything from us today!"

"Hmm," said the Kunoichi, "the fun way it is then. Let's see how long you last."

The Kunoichi bit her thumb and slammed her hand onto the ground, causing a seal array to appear under her palm, " _Kuchiyose no Jutsu!_ "

There was a large poof of smoke and when it cleared, two large snakes were uncoiling in front of the three Genin.

"Well," said the Kunoichi, "let's see if you can survive."

 

 


	20. Snakes in the Grass

The Genin members of Team 7 immediately had to dodge and go on the defensive to avoid being eaten by the massive snakes that their opponent had summoned to fight them. Hinata and Sasuke found themselves being forced to hold back one of the summoned beasts while Naruto and his clones held off the other. Sasuke used his sword to keep the snake away from him while Hinata used Juuken strikes to injure it.

Suddenly, they heard Naruto cry out and turned just in time to see the blond Genin get swallowed whole by the serpent he was fighting.

"NARUTO-KUN!" yelled out Hinata before turning to her snake and blasting it back with an Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm, allowing Sasuke to jump up with his sword and impale it through its head, causing it to fall to the ground dead. The two Genin were about to rush to their comrade's aid when the snake's eyes widened in pain and a beam of light shot out of its body, cutting it open from the inside, allowing a very slimy blond to climb out of the carcass.

"Damn that was gross," said Naruto as a third arm was retracted into his clothes, "ok, now you're gonna pay bitch! If there's one thing I can't stand it's being EATEN!"

"Kukuku," laughed the Kunoichi.

"What's so funny?" asked Sasuke as he gripped his sword.

"It's just that," smirked the Kunoichi, "you three actually think you're on my level."

The Kunoichi made several hand-seals that blurred together before she breathed out a large blast of wind that sent team seven flying back several feet.

"You don't seem to understand who you're dealing with," laughed the kunoichi, "no matter, I'll get what I want regardless."

"I don't know what you want lady," said Naruto, "but you're not gonna hurt my friends.  _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

"Kukuku," laughed the Kunoichi again, "a futile effort."

" _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ " yelled Sasuke as he spat out a large fireball that the kunoichi was forced to dodge, "Don't forget about me."

"Tch," spat the Kunoichi, "I would hope to not have to damage your bodies, but in truth, your eyes are all I really need."

The Kunoichi made several quick hand seals but was knocked out of it by several Juuken strikes to her tenketsu points.

"You won't hurt my friends," said Hinata, " _Eight Trigrams Thirty Two Palms!_ "

Hinata struck the Kunoichi's tenketsu with thirty-two strikes that released chakra bursts infused with Futon chakra, tearing apart several of the tenketsu in her body. The teens watched as the Kunoichi slumped to the ground and they felt some relief…until the body twitched and a hand with pale white skin emerged from her mouth, with a body following, climbing out of the body like a snake shedding skin, only this body was one of an adult male with some snake-like features.

"Well well," said the man in a slimy voice, "I never expected a Genin to push me this far, so allow me to introduce myself. I am Orochimaru."

"The Snake Sannin," said Hinata in horror as she realized how bad the situation was.

"Yes," said Orochimaru, "you've heard of me and my reputation? So let's dispense with the pleasantries and move to important business."

The Sannin reached into a pouch and pulled out a scroll with the kanji for Heaven, "If by some miracle you defeat me, I'll give you this scroll. If not…well you know what happens."

"You won't beat us!" yelled Naruto.

"Oh?" said Orochimaru before he narrowed his eyes, "Won't I?"

Suddenly the three of them were hit with an intense pressure that forced them to their knees like a great weight on their very souls. Sasuke's eyes widened as he felt raw terror fill his body and his hand unconsciously inched for his kunai pouch in an attempt to end it all right there…but a strong hand grabbing his wrist stopped him, causing him to look up and see the smirking face of his adopted brother.

"What's the matter?" ground out Naruto as he struggled to rise to his feet, his Rinnegan eyes blazing, despite his body trying to curl into a ball, "You're not gonna let this bastard get us, Nii-san? I know my brother isn't a coward."

"Heh," said Sasuke as he also got up and activated his Sharingan, not noticing that a third tomoe was forming in each eye, "I can't let my Otouto outclass me, now can I?"

"I will fight too," said Hinata as she got up and activated her Byakugan.

"Then let's go!" said Naruto as he created several clones.

"Entertain me," smirked Orochimaru as several of the clones charged at him with their fists ready to pummel the Sannin.

The Snake Sannin wasn't fazed by the number of clones, and simply thrust his arm forward, sending several venomous snakes surging from his sleeve, striking down the Kage Bunshin with ease.

"It's going to take more than that," said Orochimaru.

"Then try this," said Sasuke, "Naruto, Hinata, Formation 7!"

The three genin quickly made some hand seals as they faced off against the Sannin. Orochimaru simply opted to watch, amused at their futile efforts to hinder him.

"Now!" yelled Sasuke, " _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ "

" _Futon: Daitoppa!_ " yelled Naruto before breathing.

" _Eight Trigrams Vacuum Palm!_ " said Hinata as she thrust her palm forward, sending a blast of air in the form of a vacuum shell.

The wind attacks merged with Sasuke's fireball, transforming it into a roaring inferno that streaked at the Sannin that exploded upon contact with the missing-nin.

"I think we got him," sighed Naruto.

"I wouldn't be so sure," said Sasuke, "he's a Sannin for a reason."

"Quite right, Sasuke-kun," smirked Orochimaru as he appeared behind the Uchiha, "and now it's over."

In shock, Naruto looked toward where the epicenter of the explosion had been and saw a partially destroyed pile of hardened mud that resembled a human body.

"A Doton: Kage Bunshin is such a useful technique," said Orochimaru, "now for what I came for."

Before any of them could react, the Sannin bit down on Sasuke's neck, causing him to cry out in pain, before pulling back to reveal a black mark resembling three tomoe now imprinted on his skin. Orochimaru laughed and jumped back as Sasuke fell to the ground unconscious, his body twitching from the pain he was feeling.

"Now," said the Sannin, "that just leaves you two."

"BASTARD!" yelled Naruto as his Rinnegan blazed with rage and began to be tinted crimson as he unconsciously drew the Kyuubi's chakra due to his rage, causing his appearance to look more savage.

" **As much as I dislike that brother of yours, I hate snakes even more,** " growled the Kyuubi, " **tear him apart, kit!** "

Red chakra began to bubble from Naruto's skin, forming a cloak of energy around him that had two fox ears and a single tail, as Naruto let out a roar that released a blast of air which forced the Sannin to take a step back.

"So," said Orochimaru, "this is the power of the Kyuubi. Tch, this might be troublesome."

Far away, several members of the Nara clan sneezed.

"Regardless," said the Sannin, "I'll deal with you, brat."

Naruto let out another roar and charged at the Sannin, aiming to impale him with his claws, but Orochimaru simply sidestepped and kneed the boy in the gut, dropping him to the ground. He immediately then dodged several Juuken strikes from Hinata and knocked her down with a back kick to her gut. Orochimaru then raised his hand, causing a small flame to sprout on each of his five fingers, before slamming them into Naruto's gut, where the Kyuubi's seal was placed.

" _Gogyō Fūin!_ " smirked Orochimaru.

This action caused Naruto's Chakra cloak to fizzle out before he too fell to the ground unconscious.

"That leaves one," said Orochimaru before he sidestepped a kunai that was thrown at him, "is that it?"

"No," said Hinata before she vanished in a poof of smoke and replaced herself with the kunai she had thrown via Kawarimi, "this is."

With a quick slash, she tore open Orochimaru's pouch, allowing her to grab his Heaven scroll and jump away before he could stop her.

"Impressive," said Orochimaru, "but I'll have to kill you now. It's a good thing the Byakugan would still work if I plucked it from your corpse."

"That's far enough," said a voice before several ANBU appeared with their swords pointing at the Snake Sannin, "you're coming with us, Orochimaru."

"Oh?" said the Sannin, "You seem to be under the impression that you can force me to comply. Allow me to correct that."

In a flash, Orochimaru knocked the Shinobi away and used a quick Shunshin to flee.

"Damnit," said the ANBU, "let's go. Hokage-sama will need to hear about this."

"Wait," said Hinata, "what about my teammates? Orochimaru did something to them."

"I'm sorry," said an ANBU in a lion mask, "we are forbidden from interfering in these exams, except for reasons like you just witnessed. We cannot offer aid or assistance to Genin teams."

With that the ANBU vanished using their own Shunshin, leaving Hinata alone with her unconscious teammates.

xXsceneXx

About an hour later, during which Hinata had remained vigilant in guarding her team until they would wake up, Team 7 got the help they needed.

Hinata jumped up when there was a rustling in the trees around them and quickly drew a kunai while activating her Byakugan, preparing for any attack.

"Hmph," scoffed a cold voice, "so this is the true face of the Main House? Pathetic."

"Neji-niisan?" said Hinata in surprise as three teens wearing Konoha Hitai-ate jump down into the clearing.

"I knew you were a weakling from the start," said Neji.

"Please," said Hinata, "my teammates need help."

"What happened to them?" asked a girl wearing a pink outfit with her hair tied in two buns.

"We were attacked by Orochimaru," said Hinata, "he did something to the both of them."

"The Snake Sannin?" said the girl in surprise, getting a nod from Hinata, "What did he want with you three."

"He wanted our eyes," said Hinata.

"I see," said Neji, understanding the value of even a stolen Byakugan from the main house.

"Please help us," said Hinata.

"Of course," said a teen with a bowl cut wearing a green jumpsuit, "we would be happy to!"

"Lee," said Neji in a warning tone.

"Neji," said the now named Lee, "they are fellow Konoha Shinobi. It would be most unyouthful if we did not offer assistance."

"I can't believe I'm saying this," said the girl, "but I'm with Lee on this one. Besides, we already have the scrolls we need, so why not?"

"Tch," said Neji before turning to Hinata, "just don't slow us down."

With that, he jumped off, leaving his teammates to pick up Naruto and Sasuke's unconscious bodies before the three of them followed after him.

 

 


	21. Trouble Looms

Hinata was currently pacing in the room Team 7 had been given in the central tower of the forest, worrying about her teammates. After Team Gai had carried her crush and his brother to the tower, they had opened the scrolls to find that they created a summoning array, which called a Chunin to congratulate the Genin teams and inform them about the next phase. They were to wait in the tower until the time for the exams had expired, and when that time came, they would learn what the third and final phase of the exam entailed.

Sasuke and Naruto had been quickly whisked away to be examined by the medics to determine what Orochimaru had done to them, leaving her worried and wondering how they were doing and regretting not being strong enough to protect them.

"It won't happen again," said Hinata softly but firmly, "I won't be too weak. I'll become stronger, that's a promise."

xXsceneXx

As Naruto and Sasuke lay on two beds in a room of the tower, Hiruzen Sarutobi and Kakashi were consulting Jiraiya about the current condition of the two Genin.

"It seems my wayward student has perfected his Cursed Seal," sighed Hiruzen, "and if he marked young Sasuke here, he must be after the Sharingan."

"It would match his style," said Jiraiya, "use the Sharingan in order to learn all Jutsu available."

"Can you remove it?" asked Kakashi, getting a shake of the head from the Toad Sage.

"Even though Orochimaru is still considered an amateur in the art of Fūinjutsu, it seems he has managed to turn that weakness into an annoying strength by creating this twisted and convoluted seal. From what I can tell, it forcibly draws Senjutsu energy from the surrounding area and merges it with the user, allowing for a pseudo-Sennin mode transformation. Not only that, but it seems that the snake bastard managed to find a way to seal a fragment of his very soul into the Curse Mark. With that being said, I don't know of a way to safely remove the seal."

"What about Naruto-kun?" asked Hiruzen.

"His condition is not as serious as Sasuke," said Jiraiya, "he's suffering from the aftereffects of Orochimaru layering a second seal over the one that houses the Kyuubi, messing up his flow of Chakra. I should be able to remove it without any trouble."

"Do so," said the Sandaime Hokage, "once he is revived, we can see about dealing with Sasuke-kun's problem."

"Right," said Jiraiya as he raised a hand and caused five flames of chakra to sprout, one on each finger, " _Gogyō Kaiin!_ "

Jiraiya placed his hand onto the seal that Orochimaru had placed over Naruto's Ten Tetragram Seal, reversing and removing the odd numbered seal, causing Naruto to stir.

"Jiji?" he asked groggily when he opened his eyes before bolting up, "Nii-san! Hinata-chan! That Snake bastard was…"

"It's alright, Naruto-kun," said Kakashi, "Hinata managed to hold off your attacker until fellow Konoha Genin were able to get you to your goal along with your scrolls. However, Sasuke-kun is still out from what Orochimaru did to him."

"What happened?" asked Naruto, "I mean, I saw the snake-bastard bite him."

"Sasuke-kun was branded with a Curse Mark," said Jiraiya, "it is a particularly twisted form of Fūinjutsu that the user can use to control or restrict the person or people branded with the mark."

"Is there anything you can do for him?" asked Naruto.

"Unfortunately no," said the Toad Sage, "the Mark has partially fused with his Chakra network and has begun contaminating his Tenketsu by absorbing Nature Chakra and forcing his body to assimilate it. To top it off, the bastard seems to have fused a small portion of his own soul into the seal matrix, allowing him to influence and activate the seal at will."

"How will that affect him, Jiraiya-sensei?" asked Naruto.

"The forced assimilation of Nature Chakra, combined with the influence of Orochimaru's soul fragment, will likely push Sasuke-kun into a darker mindset while his body is eventually altered into a more monstrous form due to the effects of Nature Chakra on the body," said the Sage.

"I've been meaning to ask," said Naruto, "what  _is_  Nature Chakra?"

"Well," said Jiraiya, "Nature Chakra, is energy produced by every plant and animal in the world around you. Normally people don't know it's there and can't harness or mold it, but there are some that learn to absorb it into themselves. However, the process isn't without risk, and unless one can perfectly balance the Chakra ratios, then their bodies will be altered until the Chakra is expelled."

"It seems that right now, the only thing we can do is seal away the mark," said Kakashi, "I think the Fūja Hōin, would be sufficient for now."

Naruto watched as the adults talked amongst themselves and wished there was something he could do to help, when suddenly he blinked and found himself face to face with the Kyuubi in his mindscape.

" **Heh,** " laughed the Kitsune, " **looks like that brother of yours with those accursed eyes is in a bit of trouble.** "

"Shut up!" growled Naruto, "This is serious."

" **So I see,** " smirked the fox, " **that seal the snake placed on him is a real piece of work.** "

"Look," said Naruto, "I've got a lot going on, so why did you call me here? Tell me or I'm leaving."

" **Tch, so impatient,** " muttered the Kyuubi, " **fine. There might be a way you can help that brother of yours.** "

"And what would that be?" asked Naruto skeptically.

" **Think back to the training you did with the old Toad,** " said the Kyuubi.

xXflashbackXx

One-week prior, Jiraiya had just watched Naruto learn how to use another of his Rinnegan's abilities, and quite frankly, it scared him. During their training, Naruto had learned several new Jutsu, and unlocked one other Rinnegan ability, which the Kyuubi had called Paths, the ability to absorb Chakra from a person's Jutsu or body through a projected invisible barrier called the Fūjutsu Kyūin, allowing him to block and neutralize most Jutsu, but this newest technique wasn't like the others he had used.

The new ability, allowed Naruto to literally rip the soul out of a living being, absorbing their memories in the process. If used haphazardly, the technique was quite dangerous, despite the advantages it had as an interrogation tool, the fact that it left the victim a corpse made it something the Toad Sage didn't want his student to use too often.

"Naruto," said Jiraiya, "I need you to promise me that you will never use that technique unless you are ABSOLUTLY sure that you know what you're doing."

"Yeah," said Naruto, shuddering at the memory from his Kage Bunshin of getting its soul ripped out, "I promise, Jiraiya-sensei."

"Right," said Jiraiya, "now, how about I show you more Jutsu?"

xXflashback endXx

"Do you really think that could work?" asked Naruto.

" **Would you rather let that snake bastard's soul corrupt him?** " asked the Kyuubi.

"But if it doesn't work…" said Naruto.

" **Do you have a better idea?** " growled the Kyuubi, " **Not even that Toad-ningen could remove the seal and he's a master level specialist.** "

"Fine," said Naruto, "but if it doesn't work, I'm using it on you next."

Naruto opened his eyes and found the adults in the room glancing at him worriedly.

"Was it the Kyuubi again?" asked Jiraiya.

"He said there might be a way to help Nii-san," said Naruto.

"Naruto," said Hiruzen, "I know he's helped you in the past, but you can't trust a demon."

"If it means helping my brother, then I'll try," said Naruto as he walked up to Sasuke's body and placed a finger on the Curse Mark.

"NARUTO WAIT…" yelled Jiraiya as he realized what his student was doing, but he was too slow.

Naruto felt the foreign presence attached to Sasuke's soul and he gripped it with hic chakra before pulling. He drew his hand away from Sasuke's neck pulling the foreign presence out of his body, causing Sasuke to breathe easier.

"Naruto," said Jiraiya angrily, "you promised."

"Jiraiya-sensei," said Kakashi as he checked over Sasuke, "he doesn't seem to be in pain anymore. He's sleeping peacefully now."

"Naruto-kun," said Hiruzen, "what did you do?"

"I ripped the Snake-bastard's soul out of the mark," said Naruto as he held his head. The influx of memories gave him a headache.

"Is he going to be alright?" the Hokage asked Jiraiya as the seal master examined Sasuke's Curse Mark.

"The Gaki did it," said Jiraiya, "the corrupting influence of the bastard's soul is gone. With the new matrix, the kid could learn to control and harness the power of this Mark without having to worry about Orochimaru's influence."

"Excellent work, Naruto-kun," said Kakashi.

"I'd like to thank you, Kakashi-sensei," said Naruto as he massaged his head, "but we have a big problem."

The Genin turned towards the Third Hokage and gave him the most serious look the old man had ever seen on his face.

"Oto and Suna are planning an invasion."

**To be continued…**

 


	22. The Remaining Genin

"Naruto-kun," said Hiruzen seriously, "what do you mean when you say Oto is going to invade? That is a serious accusation to make, so this had better not be a prank."

"I'm dead serious, Jiji," said Naruto as he rubbed his temples to ease the headache he was feeling from the influx of Orochimaru's twisted memories, "when I use my Human Path, the technique I used to help Nii-san, I absorb the memories contained in any soul that I rip out of a person's body, and when I removed the snake-teme's soul fragment I got his memories as well."

"What does that have to do with Oto and Suna planning an invasion?" asked Kakashi.

"Orochimaru-teme is the Kage of Oto," said Naruto, "and he is secretly impersonating the Kazekage after having the man assassinated."

"This is grave news," said Hiruzen, "Naruto-kun, I am labeling this conversation an A-Ranked secret that is only to be revealed with my approval. Do you understand?"

Naruto nodded and Hiruzen sent the blond off to check on Hinata so he could talk to the others in private. The three of them headed to an empty room in the tower and Jiraiya placed several privacy seals, allowing them to talk in secret.

"To think my former student would go so far," sighed Hiruzen, "that he would orchestrate an invasion to have his vengeance."

"It does explain why Suna sent an obviously mentally unbalanced Jinchuuriki to participate in the exams," said Kakashi as he recalled the reports submitted on the foreign contestants, "they could be hoping to unleash him during the invasion."

"Luckily," said Jiraiya, "we've had time to prepare countermeasures based on what we dug up about them."

"Right," said Hiruzen, "Kakashi, Jiraiya, train your students, but do not inform them about the full weight of the situation. I will have the ANBU put failsafes into play to protect the village and its inhabitants while we prepare to fight. Do not let our enemies know we are onto them. We don't want them springing their trap before we finish weaving ours."

"Hai, Hokage-sama," said the two Shinobi.

Jiraiya removed the privacy seals and the group headed out to check on the arriving Genin.

xXsceneXx

Sasuke awoke the next day and he reunited with the rest of Team 7 and they told him what had happened while he was out, with Naruto leaving out the bit about the invasion of course.

"So this thing on my neck is some sort of seal?" said Sasuke, "And it's supposed to make me stronger at the cost of my sanity?"

"Well I removed the part that would have made you go crazy," said Naruto, "so it should be fine now."

"You should wait until you have supervision before testing it," said Hinata, "if something goes wrong, you'll need the help."

Sasuke nodded as he placed a hand on the mark branded onto his neck, "So what are we supposed to do here anyway?"

"I think we just wait until the test ends," said Hinata, "then we'll receive instructions as to what we do next."

"We shouldn't have to wait long," said Naruto, "the exam was only supposed to be for five days."

Just as he said that, a Chunin appeared in the room via a Shunshin, "If you would please make your way to the tower arena, then we can explain the next phase of the exams to you."

Team 7 nodded and headed to the large room and saw that only four other teams had passed the second exam. From what they saw, the teams that passed were, Team 10, Team Gai, a team from Suna, a team from Kumo, and themselves. Apparently, Team 8 was not able to make the cut.

"First of all," said Hiruzen as he addressed the gathered Genin, "I would like to congratulate you all for surviving this far in the Chunin Exams. In the days of old, Shinobi would gain clients and contracts through the art of war and battle, showing their superior strength and ability in battle to reassure clients that they would get the job done. Now, in times of peace, a similar stage is needed to draw in clients for the Shinobi villages, thus the Chunin Exams were created."

The Hokage paused and let the information sink into the gathered Genin before continuing his speech.

"Yes," said the Sandaime Hokage, "the Chunin Exams were created as a replacement for war, so many wealthy and influential individuals will be witnessing the next phase of the exams. The third and final part of the Chunin Exams, is a tournament. In one month, all of you will gather at our village's arena where you will fight in a tournament until only one of you is left. Also note, that you will not be judged solely on your ranking in the tournament, but on your performance. If one of you shows that you have what it takes to become a Chunin, you will be promoted regardless of how you fare."

The Genin's faces showed eagerness at that statement and when they had quieted down, Hiruzen spoke again.

"Now we shall part ways," said the Old Monkey, "use the next month wisely. We will be handing out the initial matchups now."

Konoha Shinobi passed out forms with the initial tournament matchups to the Genin and they were sent off to head back to the village, leaving the Hokage alone.

"ANBU," said Hiruzen, causing several masked Shinobi to appear.

"What do you need, Hokage-sama?" asked a female ANBU with long purple hair and a cat mask.

"I will need all of you to prepare for a special mission," said Hiruzen, "I have heard from a source that Oto and Suna are going to launch an invasion of Konoha sometime soon. I need you to confirm these rumors and if proven true, I need you to prepare the countermeasures put in place to protect the civilians. We cannot let Oto or Suna know that we are aware of their schemes, so this will be an S-Ranked secret. If I find out someone here has divulged said secret, I will personally see to their execution. Do I make myself clear?"

"Hai, Hokage-sama," said the assembled Shinobi as before they vanished in a Shunshin.

"Now," said Hiruzen as he stood up straight and cracked his spine to loosen up, "perhaps I should prepare as well."

If anyone were to enter the Forest of Death within the next few weeks, they would know that, without any doubts in their mind, Hiruzen Sarutobi's title 'God of Shinobi' was well earned indeed.

xXsceneXx

After Team 7 arrived back in the village proper, they met up with Kakashi at their usual training ground. The trio was surprised to find the grey haired Jonin already waiting for them when they arrived and eyed him suspiciously.

"Alright," said Naruto, "who are you and what have you done with Kakashi-sensei?"

"Don't worry," said Kakashi, "it's me."

"I don't know," said Sasuke with a smirk, "Kakashi-sensei is never on time for anything. I'd bet on him being late to his own funeral."

"I don't think he's been on time for meetings either," added Hinata.

"I wonder if he was late to his promotion?" mused Naruto.

The three Genin chuckled when their sensei silently walked over to the training posts and sulked, a black cloud forming over his crouched form as he drew circles in the dirt. Once they felt the joke had run its course, they decided to ask the question that had been on their minds.

"Ano, Kakashi-sensei," said Hinata, "we were wondering, who will be training us for the next part of the Exams?"

"Well," said Kakashi as he got out of his slump, "since I'm the only Shinobi of Konoha with a Sharingan other than Sasuke-kun here, I would be training him in the use of it, along with some Jutsu and Kenjutsu tips as well. You Hinata, could do well learning some new Jutsu and skills to add to your repertoire, so I've called in some favors to help with that. As for you Naruto, you'll be continuing with your instruction from Jiraiya-sama."

Upon seeing his students' determined looks, Kakashi gave them a sincere smile, or what passed for one with his mouth hidden, "I want you three to know how proud I am. You three have become one of the best teams of Genin I have ever seen, comparable with the Sannin, the team trained by the Hokage himself, so I expect one thing in the upcoming exam. Win. Show the village and all others attending the skill of Team 7."

"Hai, Kakashi-sensei," said the three Genin.

"Excellent," said Kakashi, "now, how about we go out to eat at Ichiraku Ramen to celebrate. My treat."

"YATTA!" cheered Naruto, "Maybe I'll finally beat your record, Hinata-chan."

"We'll see, Naruto-kun," giggled Hinata at the antics of her crush.

"I think the record was, 20 to 14 in her favor," mused Sasuke, "I'm not sure that I care for Ramen as much as you do, but their Tomato Ramen with Okaka is quite good."

Kakashi chuckled as he watched his students head off and tried not to think of the impact this dinner would put on his monthly budget. He was indeed proud of them, and he knew they would do well. In fact, perhaps he should make a few extra wagers on them in the betting pool going around the Chunin and Jonin regarding the outcome of the exams. He might be able to pay for this entire meal with the winnings.

With a smile, the masked Jonin headed after his team in a light jog. After all, he liked Ichiraku too.

xXsceneXx

The next day, Naruto headed to Training Ground 3 where Jiraiya was going to be meeting him to go over his training for the next portion of the exams. When he arrived, he saw the old sage standing there with a bag packed full of scrolls.

"Jiraiya-sensei," said Naruto, "are you going somewhere?"

"As a matter of fact Gaki," said the Toad Sage, "we're both going on a little trip."

"Why?" asked Naruto, "Shouldn't we be training instead? I need to be ready for the next part of the Exams."

"Don't worry," said Jiraiya, "we're still gonna train. It's just that the training that I have in mind might have a good deal of collateral damage involved, so we're gonna be camping out just past the village outskirts while I make sure you're strong enough to take on whomever challenges you in the battles to come."

"I'll need to grab my things," said Naruto.

"Not a problem," said Jiraiya, "I already grabbed all the supplies the both of us will need for this extended outing. So, let's get going while the day is young. The sooner we arrive, the sooner we can begin."

"Right," said Naruto before he followed the older Shinobi as he led the blond toward the Village Gate.

 


	23. Prepare for Trouble

"So," said Naruto as he and Jiraiya walked, "where are we going Jiraiya-sensei? We've been traveling for almost a day and a half now."

"We're almost there Gaki," said Jiraiya, "the training we are going to do is potentially destructive, and I want to limit the collateral damage."

"What kind of training are we gonna be doing?" asked Naruto.

"Something special and unique," said Jiraiya, "if it works, it will give you a distinct edge over many of your opponents. We're here."

Naruto looked up and saw that they were standing at the mouth of a large rocky plain that was devoid of both flora and fauna and was surrounded on all sides by mountains, forming a natural wall around the area.

"What are we gonna do here?" asked Naruto.

"Well Gaki," said Jiraiya, "here is where we're gonna train you to better control and use the Kyuubi's chakra."

Naruto just stared at the Toad Sage in shock. To think the man was going to help him harness and use the Kyuubi's power was surprising to say the least. Not that he was reluctant though, he remembered the power boost he had gotten in the Forest of Death. In hindsight, that was probably due to the Kyuubi's chakra, and if so, he wondered what it would be like if he could use that strength at will.

" **You're right about that,** " said the Kyuubi from within Naruto's seal, " **with my power, you could make your enemies tremble.** "

"Awesome," said Naruto, "so how do we start?"

Jiraiya led the boy to the center of the valley and created five Kage Bunshin that moved to the edges of the plain and made several hand seals before slamming their hands onto the ground, creating a sealing array that would contain any chakra they release and keep it in the valley.

"Right," said Jiraiya, "first of all, I'm going to need to talk to the Kyuubi."

Naruto nodded and closed his eyes, passing partial control of his body over to the Bijū, allowing it to have access to his eyes and vocal chords.

" **What is it you want, Toad-ningen?** " asked the Kyuubi as his crimson eyes replaced Naruto's blue ones.

"Look," said Jiraiya, "I don't trust you. You attacked my home. Twice. But regardless of that, you seem to have Naruto's continued health as a priority. I'd like to know why."

" **Tch,** " grunted the Kyuubi, " **if you must know, he reminds me of someone that my father told me would one day appear when I was a kit. I think the brat might be the one who will change things.** "

"I see," said Jiraiya.

" **Now,** " said the fox, " **what exactly do you want from me? I know you didn't ask the Gaki to let me talk just so you could question my motivations.** "

"True," said Jiraiya, "since I'm gonna be teaching Naruto to use your power, I'm going to need to loosen the seal, and I want you to know this, if you even think about using this opportunity to escape, I'll lock the seal so tight that you won't even be able to imagine what the outside world is like."

" **Heh,** " smirked the Kyuubi, " **don't worry. The Gaki has my interest and I've decided to stick with him for a while longer. I won't try to escape, and I know you can easily seal me away if I try to. Just one thing, don't threaten me again, ningen. Ever.** "

Jiraiya nodded and the Bijū returned control over to his host, causing the blond Uzumaki to blink and look around.

"What did you want to talk to the Kyuubi about, sensei?" he asked.

"Just something regarding your training," said Jiraiya, "now I'll need you to show me your seal, Naruto-kun."

Naruto lifted up his shirt and channeled chakra to his stomach, causing the Uzumaki sealing array to appear on his skin. Jiraiya then channeled chakra to his fingertips and placed his hand onto the seal.

"Now this might hurt a bit," said Jiraiya before twisting his hand, causing the seal binding the Kyuubi's Chakra to loosen itself, allowing the Bijū chakra to surge through the Genin's body.

Naruto hunched over as he was enveloped by a bright crimson aura and his features became more animalistic, with his whiskers becoming more pronounced and his teeth and fingernails becoming sharper. The blond threw back his head and let out a roar as a shockwave of chakra was released from his body that caused Jiraiya to slide backwards as his sandals dug into the dirt.

"Gaki?" he said warily, "You alright?"

"It feels like I have a dozen Raiton Jutsu pumping through my veins," breathed Naruto as he opened his eyes to reveal crimson irises with vulpine pupils, "this power's incredible."

"Ok," said the Toad Sage, "now I'm going to need you to reign in that power. I know it feels amazing, but you're going to need to control it if you want to use it."

Naruto nodded and the oppressive aura of chakra was drawn back into his body, allowing the Sannin to breathe easier and walk closer to his student.

"Ok," said Jiraiya, "I'm going to be teaching you a few powerful Jutsu, and considering the boost to your reserves the Kyuubi is now giving you, you should be able to handle them."

"Awesome!" exclaimed Naruto, "What do we start with?"

"Well," said Jiraiya, "we're going to be starting with a special Jutsu that was created and refined by the Yondaime Hokage himself."

"You're going to teach me the Hiraishin?" exclaimed Naruto.

"No," said Jiraiya, causing the blond to pout, "besides, the Yondaime didn't create that technique. The Nidaime invented the Hiraishin. No, the Jutsu I'm gonna be teaching you first is something the Yondaime created all on his own. It's an A-Ranked Jutsu that combines Chakra Control, Rotation, and Containment into a single package."

The Toad Sage held out his hand and a sphere of spiraling, twisting, chakra appeared in his palm.

" _RASENGAN!_ " he yelled as he slammed the sphere into the ground, creating an explosion of dust and debris. When the dust cleared, a large crater could be seen carved into the ground under the Sage's feet.

"That. Was. AWESOME!" yelled Naruto, "I'm gonna learn to do that? What do I have to do first?"

Jiraiya tossed Naruto a water balloon and couldn't help but chuckle at the incredulous look his student sent at him.

"The first step is to pop that water balloon by spinning the water using your chakra," said Jiraiya, "once you can do so, then we'll move on to step two. I recommend creating several Kage Bunshin to work on that while I work on other Jutsu with you."

"Ok," said Naruto, "what are we gonna learn first?"

"Well," said Jiraiya, "your brother uses a sword in combat, so I'm going to teach you a way to make a sword of your own."

Jiraiya drew a kunai and exhaled onto it, creating a shimmering blade of Futon chakra around it, resembling a scimitar.

"This, is the Futon: Shinkūjin," said the Sage, "and it's the first of many techniques that I'll be teaching you."

xXsceneXx

While Naruto was training with Jiraiya, one of his other teammates was going through some intense training of her own.

Hinata stood motionless in the center of a clearing with her eyes closed as she regulated her breathing, before she opened them and activated her Byakugan. She then quickly channeled Futon chakra to her palms and swung her arms around her as she used her flexibility to bend and twist her body, allowing her to cut through several blunt shuriken that had been launched at her from varying angles and vectors. As she came to a stop, the weapons fell to the ground around her, all of them having been sliced cleanly in half by the thin blades of chakra she had been emitting.

"Excellent work, Daughter," said Hiashi Hyuuga from where he was stood watching his daughter train.

"Otou-sama," said Hinata as she rose from her stance and gave a respectful bow to her father.

"That is an interesting form you have developed," he stated as he looked over the pieces of the training weapons, "you've combined Futon Chakra with a more fluid version of our Juuken techniques."

"Forgive me if I have overstepped my bounds," said Hinata as she bowed to he father.

"No," said Hiashi, surprising Hinata, "it is an ingenious adaptation of our original Juuken forms. It allows for one to flow around an opponent's attacks and land strikes that can physically damage the Chakra Network and Tenketsu of the opponent."

"Thank you, Otou-sama," said Hinata.

"May I offer assistance in refining this art?" he asked his daughter with a rare smile.

"Yes," said Hinata in surprise, "that would be appreciated."

Hiashi smiled as he and his eldest daughter got to work. She had been showing much promise since she had met her teammates. His only regret was that he would one day have to pit her and her sister against each other to determine which would be branded as a Branch Family member. Perhaps it was time to look into some loopholes.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know that in canon the Kyuubi chakra cloak was corrosive and damaging to Naruto and caused his anger to spike while he attacks, but here, the Kyuubi is more cooperative due to Naruto having the Rinnegan, causing the fox to wonder if the blond is the one the sage spoke of when he left the Bijū, so his chakra is far less corrosive and malevolent due to him offering it willingly instead of fighting against giving it.


	24. Make it Double

It had been two weeks since Naruto had begun training with the Toad Sage, and, while not making a lot of progress with the Rasengan; he had learned several new Jutsu from the Sannin. Still though, he was thoroughly frustrated at his.

"Gah!" groaned Naruto as the balloon in his hands popped again, "I'll never get this!"

"I wouldn't get to discouraged," said Jiraiya, "even with your Bunshin, I didn't expect you to complete the first two stages of the technique in two weeks. Besides, the third step is by far the most difficult, so it's only natural that you're struggling. Don't forget that you're making great progress with the Jutsu I've shown you and your control over the Kyuubi's Chakra is getting much better."

Seeing that Naruto was still looking despondent the Sannin chuckled, "How about I help you think up a strategy for your next opponent?" he offered.

Getting a nod from his student, Jiraiya sat himself on the ground and motioned for Naruto to do the same, "So, who's your opponent?"

"Well," said Naruto as he pulled out the flier with the first round matchups, "according to this, I'm facing some Kunoichi from Kumo named Samui."

"Hmm," said Jiraiya, "Kumo-nin tend to specialize in Raiton Ninjutsu, with the occasional Kenjutsu specialist thrown in the mix. Suiton and Doton Jutsu should be avoided, but Futon techniques will be quite helpful."

"What about the Fox's chakra?" asked Naruto, "Couldn't I use that to fight too?"

The old Sage shook his head, "I wouldn't recommend it for several reasons. First, it would tip your hand too soon, and that could hurt your chances of making Chunin in later rounds. Second, it might send the wrong message to the villagers that still think having the Kyuubi stuck in you makes you a walking paper-bomb. We don't want to fan any flames we don't have to."

"Then what should I do?" asked Naruto.

"Try to keep your distance," said Jiraiya, "use that near limitless ocean of chakra you possess to bombard her with several of the long, range Jutsu I showed you. If she gets close, then channel elemental chakra to your kunai like I taught you. Also, don't be afraid to abuse the Kage Bunshin. Pretty much everyone knows about your skill with it, so it's practically your signature move, so showing it off too much shouldn't hurt your chances of making the cut."

"I can do that," said Naruto.

"Also," said Jiraiya, "don't reveal your Rinnegan unless it's absolutely necessary. And even then, don't showcase all of your abilities."

"Why not?" asked Naruto.

"If the fact that you possess the eyes of the Sage of Six Paths gets out," said Jiraiya, "then there will be a lot of unwanted attention on you. People might decide to risk another Hyuuga Incident in order to obtain your Doujutsu."

"I thought we were supposed to show off in this phase of the exam?" asked Naruto.

"You are," said Jiraiya, "but only to a certain extent. Your goal is to show the proctors that you are ready to become Chunin, not just in terms of strength, but in terms of tactical thinking as well. Showing all your best moves in round one would actually hurt your chances, even if you make it to the finals."

"So I need to show that I have a Chunin-level brain?" asked Naruto.

"In a sense," said Jiraiya as he chuckled at his student's choice of words.

"All right then!" said Naruto, "I'm gonna show them that I can be the best Chunin there is-Dattebayo!"

The Toad Sage chuckled at hearing his student's verbal tic, remembering another Uzumaki that had a similar verbal tic, before getting to his feet.

"Well," said the Sannin as he clapped his hands, "let's get back to work with your training. You could still improve on the Jutsu I've showed you and your Chakra Control still needs some work. Not to mention that you've yet to finish learning the Rasengan."

"Yosh!" said Naruto, "Let's get to it!"

Jiraiya chuckled, "Just wait Gaki, you won't be as eager once we really get started."

xXsceneXx

Meanwhile, while Jiraiya had been training Naruto, Sasuke was going through his own intense training regimen with Kakashi in a secluded area.

"Again!" said Kakashi as he knocked Sasuke to the ground.

Sasuke grit his teeth as he pulled himself to his feet, feeling the strain on his body from the Fūinjutsu training bands Yūgao had given him. Once he was standing again, he pushed the tiredness out of his mind and got into a fighting stance again. Kakashi had been pushing him to work his strength, stamina, and speed by sparring with the Genin while he wore his weights, which Kakashi had increased in power as well.

The results were quite promising.

Sasuke had improved with leaps and bounds, and that was with his weights still restricting his movement. Kakashi had also taught him some Jutsu and a few tricks to use with his Sharingan, hoping to better prepare the boy for his upcoming matches.

Kakashi watched as Sasuke sped at him, never coming directly at him (thank you Yūgao), swinging his practice sword at his head. The Jonin didn't even flinch and simply blocked the attack and aimed a kick at Sasuke's midsection. Luckily, Kakashi had had Sasuke keep his Sharingan active, and with the improvements to his reaction time that this training had been providing, Sasuke was able to quickly use a Kawarimi and replace himself with a log before re-appearing behind the Jonin with a kick aimed at him.

As skilled as Sasuke was, Kakashi was still leagues ahead of him and Sasuke soon found himself flat on his back with the grey-haired Jonin's foot on his chest.

"Excellent effort," said Kakashi as he helped the boy to his feet, "I can tell that the training Yūgao's been giving you has been helping."

Sasuke opted not to answer in favor of catching his breath and Kakashi offered him a water bottle. The thankful Genin quickly drank half of it and poured the rest over his head to cool off. Pulling out the flier with the first round matchups on it from…somewhere, and looked it over.

"For your first match, you know who your opponent will be," said Kakashi, "but the results of your matches to follow will be determined by the skills of the other combatants. Therefore, you're going to be training until you're ready to face any one of them, including Naruto."

"Yeah," said Sasuke as he caught his breath, "no doubt that he'll win his match. I just have to make sure to win mine so we can see who's stronger."

Kakashi nodded, "Well, first you'll have to beat your upcoming opponent. It looks like you'll be facing off against Rock Lee, the protégé of the Jonin Taijutsu Specialist, Might Guy, which is why we're focusing a good amount of your training on improving your physical abilities. From what I've seen of Guy's fighting style, having him get in close is a double-edged sword. On one hand, he's too close to avoid your Jutsu, but on the other, you are close enough for him to beat you to a pulp. If what I've seen of his style reflects on his students, then you'll need to be ready for a tough fight."

"Am I allowed to remove my weights?" asked Sasuke.

"Yes," said Kakashi, "but don't do so unless you can't keep up, even with your Sharingan."

"Right," said Sasuke with a tired nod.

"Now," said Kakashi, "you won't only be facing Lee, so let's see what kinds of Jutsu I can teach you."


	25. Spiraling Whirlpool Against the Cold Cloud

The time had come. It was time for the Final Phase of the Chunin Exams, the Tournament. In addition to the villagers of Konohagakure, the Chunin Exam Stadium was filled with dignitaries from all across the Five Shinobi Nations, all eager to see the skills of the Genin that had made it this far in the Konoha Chunin Exams. As the spectators watched, the Exam proctor, Gekkō Hayate, walked to the center of the arena and faced the first two contestants, Naruto, and a Kunoichi with blond hair, pale skin, and a somewhat gifted figure.

*Cough* "The first round of the Chunin Exam Tournament begins now," said Hayate, "the first match, Uchiha Naruto Vs Samui of Kumo. Both fighters ready?"

"Hell yeah!" said Naruto, "I'm gonna win Dattebayo."

"If you think that you'll win, then I'll have to teach you a cool lesson in reality," said Samui as she placed her hand on her tanto, "one as uncool as you isn't ready to be a Shinobi."

"I'll make you eat those words," smirked Naruto.

"BEGIN!" yelled Hayate before leaping back.

As soon as the proctor called out for the match to start, Samui shot forward with her tanto, aiming to end the match in an instant by cutting down her opponent. The Kunoichi from Kumogakure was certainly fast, and had Naruto not trained his reaction time with Jiraiya, he wouldn't have been able to react until the blade made contact and tore through his skin. However, he  _had_  trained in that area and was able to pull off a quick Kawarimi with a log from the forest on the edge of the arena, allowing him to escape while the log was sliced cleanly in two by the Kunoichi's blade.

Naruto knew that this fight was going to be difficult just by seeing how fast the girl was, so he quickly made a hand seal and created a dozen Kage Bunshin. The Bunshin scattered and quickly began to throw shuriken at the blond Kumo-nin.

To her credit, Samui didn't flinch and quickly cut through the weapons with quick swings of her Raiton-infused sword. Sheathing her blade, she made several quick hand-seals, channeling her chakra and converting it to the Raiton element.

" _Raiton: Thunderbolt!_ " yelled Samui as she blasted a barrage of lightning from her hands that tore though Naruto's Bunshin, leaving an empty arena filled with smoke.

"Where is he?" muttered Samui as she looked around for where the blond had escaped to.

Suddenly, the log Naruto had used to escape her first attack exploded in a poof of smoke and transformed into the blond Shinobi. Capitalizing on the Kumo-nin's surprise, Naruto quickly threw three shuriken infused with Futon Chakra at her. Samui automatically reacted by dodging the first two and moving to deflect the third with her Tanto, neither realizing that the blade was infused with chakra, nor infusing her own with any either.

Because of this slip-up, Naruto's shuriken easily cleaved through the blade of Samui's sword, and it was only due to her sharp reflexes that she avoided the spinning weapon with only a slash across her cheek and several locks of her hair cut.

Samui frowned as she felt blood drip down her cheek and tossed her now useless blade to the side before making more hand-seals and slamming her palms into the ground, releasing a surge of electric current that tore through the earth and stone as it streaked toward the adopted Uchiha.

xXsceneXx

"Hmph, the brat's got skill, I'll admit," muttered A, the Yondaime Raikage as he watched the match from his spot next to Hiruzen Sarutobi and the Yondaime Kazekage.

"Indeed," said the Kazekage, "using the Kage Bunshin as a cover to Henge into the log he previously used as a Kawarimi, an interesting strategy. Do you think he has a chance to beat your genin, Raikage-sama?"

"Tch, doubtful," scoffed the Raikage, "the brat may have a few tricks, but it's nothing Samui can't handle, even if her sword is broken, she shouldn't have too much trouble defeating him."

"I see," said the Kazekage.

"I would like to know where the brat learned the Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu," said A, "or are you now teaching your Kinjutsu to Genin, Hokage-sama?"

Hiruzen simply chuckled at that as he watched the match, "Originally, Naruto-kun was to learn the normal Kage Bunshin no Jutsu, but he overloaded it with Chakra and inadvertently used the Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu instead."

"Most interesting," said the Kazekage, "A Genin that possesses enough Chakra to use a Kinjutsu like that without fear of Chakra exhaustion?"

"Speaking of the brat," said the Raikage, "how is it he's an Uchiha? Don't they all have distinctive black hair and eyes?"

"He was adopted by the clan," said Hiruzen, "but we are not here to discuss the background of my Shinobi. Let us continue to watch the match."

xXsceneXx

Naruto grunted out in pain as he was thrown backwards by a blast of lightning from a Raiton Jutsu that his opponent had hit him with. His clothes were a bit singed and if it weren't for the Kyuubi giving him an unnaturally fast healing factor, he would be covered with burns and bruises.

" **You're gonna need to do better than this, Gaki,** " growled the Kyuubi from his seal.

' _I know, I know!_ ' Naruto ground out, ' _let me think._ '

Naruto quickly created a Kage Bunshin and both of them quickly rushed through several hand-seals as they faced the blond Kunoichi.

" _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ " yelled the clone before breathing out a gout of fire.

" _Futon: Daitoppa!_ " yelled the original, blasting forward a powerful gale.

The flames mixed with the wind and intensified into a raging inferno that rushed at the Kumo Kunoichi. Samui's eyes widened at this and she quickly made several hand-seals as she channeled Raiton Chakra around her body in vast amounts.

" _Raiton: Bakurai!_ " she yelled as she released the chakra as a powerful blast of electricity that collided with the incoming inferno and exploded violently, sending her flying back as Naruto's Kage Bunshin dispelled.

The Kunoichi quickly pulled herself to her feet and drew two kunai, which she immediately coated with Raiton Chakra, and got into a fighting stance as several Kage Bunshin burst, through the cloud of dust kicked up by the explosion. Samui moved with skill and grace despite the minor injures she received when she countered the Jinchuuriki's combination Jutsu, cutting through the Bunshin with ease and slamming a kick into the chest of one that just so happened to be the original, sending Naruto tumbling back.

Naruto rolled to his feet and made several Bunshin behind the cover of a smoke bomb. The Bunshin threw several shuriken at the blond Kunoichi which were dodged with ease, but suddenly, as one passed by her, it exploded in a poof of smoke and transformed into the original with a Kunai ready in his hand.

Twisting in the air, Naruto buried the blade of his Kunai into the Kunoichi's side, but was caught off guard when the girl transformed into electricity that flowed into his body and sent him skidding across the ground, the electricity stunning him temporarily.

xXsceneXx

"A Raiton Kage Bunshin," mused Kurenai Yūhi as she sat in the stands of the arena with her students.

"Raiton Kage Bunshin?" asked Sakura from her seat next to the Jonin Genjutsu Mistress, "I've read of the normal Kage Bunshin, but Raiton?"

"It's similar to the technique created by the Nidaime Hokage, but it uses Raiton Chakra to create the Bunshin," explained Kurenai, "because of this, the Kage Bunshin transforms back into lightning upon being destroyed, allowing it to shock and stun the one who dispelled it."

"Who knew Naruto was this skilled," said Kiba, "too bad we didn't make it. I would've loved to fight him."

"Kurenai-sensei," said Shino, "Uzumaki-san is creating far more Bunshin than what the standard Kage Bunshin no Jutsu should allow for."

Kurenai's nodded, "Kakashi told me about that in passing. Apparently that's a side effect of Naruto's enormous Chakra reserves overpowering the Jutsu. Now I want you to realize that that Jutsu is normally extremely dangerous for Genin to learn without special circumstances, so don't go trying to copy his feat."

The three Genin of Team 8 nodded and continued to watch the match as it progressed.

xXsceneXx

"Damnit!" Naruto grunted as he took a Raiton Jutsu to the chest due to his reaction time being hindered by the electricity from the Raiton Kage Bunshin, ' _A little help Kyuubi?_ '

" **Working on it,** " muttered the Kyuubi as he channeled enough of his Chakra around Naruto to burn off the Raiton Chakra, but not enough to tip his hand as a Jinchuuriki, " **remember to keep your guard up, Gaki.** "

Naruto quickly leapt to his feet and thought up a quick strategy as he dodged another Raiton Jutsu from Samui. Creating a Kage Bunshin, the two of them quickly went through several hand-seals just as Samui made hand-seals of her own.

" _Raiton: Thunderbolt!_ " yelled Samui as she blasted a large amount of lightning at Naruto.

" _Suiton:_   _Mizurappa!_ " yelled Naruto's Bunshin before spitting out a torrent of water.

" _Futon: Daitoppa!_ " yelled the original before he shot a blast of wind at Samui.

The water and wind merged into a twisting vortex and, when it came into contact with Samui's Raiton Jutsu, absorbed the lightning as it streaked toward the Kunoichi and became a maelstrom of electrified water. Samui wasn't able to react in time and was engulfed by the wave, causing her to scream out in pain as she was blown backwards while lightning coursed through her body.

When the Jutsu ended, Samui fell to the ground and lay there limply, barely conscious as her body twitched occasionally from the residual electricity. Hayate walked up and inspected the Kunoichi, and upon seeing that she wasn't going to be able to continue the fight in her current condition, raised his hand into the air.

"Samui is unable to continue," said Hayate, "and so, the winner of the first match of the Chunin Exams Third Phase, is Naruto Uchiha!"

The arena was silent for a moment, but slowly, building up to a large crescendo, the stadium erupted with applause. Naruto smiled as he faced the crowd and raised his hands in the air before yelling out, "Believe it Dattebayo!"

 


	26. Battles Continue

Naruto made his way back to the competitor's section of the stands to receive congratulations from several of his fellow Konoha Shinobi. After a bit of talk, the announcer silenced the stadium to declare the second matchup and Shikamaru entered the arena to face a blond Kunoichi wearing a Sunagakure Hitai-ate and carrying a large fan.

' _Troublesome,_ ' thought Shikamaru, ' _I only signed up here because Ino wouldn't shut up and my mom threatened to punish me if I backed out of this, and now I have to fight a girl in the first round? Just great. I guess I could just forfeit…_ '

"SHIKARMARU NARA!" yelled out the voice of Nara Yoshino, Shikamaru's mother and the Matriarch of the Nara Clan, "IF YOU EVEN THINK OF THROWING THIS MATCH WITHOUT EVEN TRYING BECAUSE IT'S 'TOO TROUBLESOME,' I WILL CONFISCATE YOUR SHOGI SETS AND PUT YOU TO WORK TENDING TO THE DEER DURING ALL YOUR FREE TIME!"

"…damnit," swore Shikamaru, "I guess I have to fight now. Troublesome."

"What's with you?" asked Temari, "It's like you don't even want to be here?"

"In all honesty," said Shikamaru, "I wouldn't have entered if my mom and my teammate hadn't pressured me so much. It's just too much trouble. But it seems I'm gonna have to give it my all here. What a drag."

"If both contestants are ready," said Genma, "BEGIN!"

Shikamaru immediately jumped backwards just in time to dodge a powerful swing from the Suna Kunoichi's large folded fan, landing in a crouch with his fingers steepled as he watched his opponent.

"You're good with that fan," said Shikamaru, "I'd bet you're quite skilled with Futon Jutsu."

"Hoh?" said Temari as she raised an eyebrow, "Not bad, but that much is obvious, isn't it? It doesn't mean you'll beat me."

Shikamaru threw several Shuriken, but the Kunoichi quickly deflected them with her fan before opening the giant weapon and readying it.

"Let's see you handle this," said Temari before swinging her fan, " _Kamaitachi no Jutsu!_ "

Temari sent a blast of wind from her fan that was filled with invisible vacuum blades that slammed into the lazy Nara, tearing him apart until he was covered in a poof of smoke and replaced with a shattered log.

"Kawarimi," muttered Temari before dodging to the side to avoid several Kunai that stabbed into the ground, and, upon noticing the explosive tags tied to the ring if the Kunai, she barely had enough time to dive out of the range of the explosion.

"Tch, childish tricks," muttered Temari as she looked around for her opponent, "where is he?"

Suddenly, two copies of the lazy Genin burst from the trees and raced at her, holding a kunai in their hand, but what was most shocking, was that both copies cast a shadow on the ground under their feet.

"Kage Bunshin?" said Temari in shock, "No way! You can't have the chakra for that!"

"Care to test that theory?" asked Shikamaru, "Or are you gonna call my bluff?"

Temari looked at the ground and noticed a thin shadow connecting the two bunshin and figured they planned to snare her with Ninja wire to force her to surrender, so she smirked and ran forward, leaping over one bunshin and landing lightly behind them, but when she tried to turn and attack, she found her body was unable to move.

"Kagemane no Jutsu success," said Shikamaru as his bunshin faded away, revealing it to be a standard one with the original's shadow stretched under it. When Temari had leapt over it, her shadow had connected, and allowed Shikamaru to paralyze her.

"Now," said Shikamaru as he bent down, forcing the Suna Kunoichi to copy him, "I suggest you forfeit."

Temari saw her hand involuntarily reach for her Kunai pouch and realized the teen was planning to force her to hurt herself, so she decided to try and call his bluff.

"If we try to stab ourselves, you'll be hurt too, right?" she smirked, before realizing that Shikamaru's hand was empty.

Seeing her shocked look, he allowed a smirk and raised his hand to his neck, forcing her to press her blade to her throat, "I switched sides while we were in the trees."

' _Crap,_ ' thought Temari, ' _I need to be present during the invasion! I can't lose here!_ '

Pumping Chakra to her muscles, the Kunoichi fought against the Jutsu that held her captive, slowly moving her hand away from her neck and smirking as she saw Shikamaru's hand move to follow her movements.

"So that's it," smirked Temari, "I may be forced to follow your movements, but you have to follow mine as well."

Shikamaru grimaced at her realization about the weakness of his Jutsu and quickly canceled it and rolled to the side to dodge a blast of razor wind from a swing of Temari's giant fan. Rolling to his feet, he managed to pull off a Kawarimi just in time to avoid being shredded by a blast of chakra infused wind that Temari sent at him.

Reappearing behind the Suna Kunoichi, he threw several Kunai at her that had had explosive notes attacked, but she quickly spun and sent them flying back at him with a swing of her fan, causing the notes to catch him in their explosion, leaving him lying prone on the ground.

"Give up yet?" asked Temari.

"Troublesome," groaned Shikamaru from where he lay on the ground, "yeah. I'm out. I've got several more plans, but with the injuries you've given me, they only have a 53% chance of success. Plus, even if I do win, there's no guarantee that I'll be in any condition to fight in the upcoming matches. I forfeit."

"Alright then," sighed Hayate, "winner by forfeit, Temari!"

The crowd cheered, but it was a bit more subdued than it was after Naruto's match, probably due to the anticlimactic finish. Sitting in the spectator's section of the stands, Yoshino Nara sighed and pressed her hand to her face as she shook her head.

"Troublesome," she muttered.

The combatants exited the field and Shikamaru was escorted to the medics on duty to deal with the injuries he had suffered, while Temari was sent to the contestants' section, the staff instructed to only give basic to prevent serious injury.

' _That guy,_ ' thought Temari, ' _he's a lazy-ass, but he could have ended the match earlier if he wanted. The question is why?_ '

xXsceneXx

"That brat has a real lazy streak," chuckled the Kazekage, "but he has a good head on his shoulders."

"Bah," snorted A, "a Chunin can't just call it quits when things look tough."

"Perhaps," said Hiruzen, "but foresight and good judgment are. He likely was quite serious when he said that he had several more plans thought up. A Shinobi should be able to know when a mission isn't likely to succeed and when continuing would only lead to meaningless pain and possibly death."

"Indeed," said the Kazekage, "despite losing his match, I would support his promotion to Chunin."

"Let's see how the rest of the competitors do before making any final judgments," said Hiruzen.

"Sounds fair," nodded the Raikage.

xXsceneXx

As soon as the previous combatants had cleared the arena, Hayate prepared to call the next two down.

"Round three," said Hayate, "Gaara vs Kankuro."

"I FORFEIT!" yelled Kankuro hastily as he made a point to ignore the murderous glare borderlining on psychotic that Gaara had aimed at him.

There was silence in the arena before Hayate coughed into his hand and nodded, "Right then, winner by forfeit, Gaara. Will Hyuuga Neji and Karui report to the arena?"

Negi entered the arena and faced off against a tanned girl with bright red hair that wore a sword across her back. Seeing the Kumo symbol on her headband, he scowled.

"I'm surprised that Konoha let trash like you into the village after what you pulled at the 'negotiations' last time," he spat.

"Ha," scoffed the Kumo-nin, "you talk big, Hyuuga, but I can tell by that headband that you're just another lackey of the Main Branch. And, as I recall, it was Konoha that killed our Shinobi and sent a body double instead when we asked for the murderer."

Neji's scowl darkened and he slipped into a Juuken stance, prompting Hayate to start the match before either combatant did something they'd regret later.

"HAJIME!"

Karui made to draw her sword, but before she could react, Neji had already sped into her guard in a Jūken stance.

"You are within my field of divination," said Neji, " _Hakke Rokujūyon Shō!_ "

Neji slammed his hands into Karui's torso, first two times, then four, then eight, then sixteen, continuing until he delivered sixty-four strikes that released bursts of chakra into the girl's tenketsu, sealing them shut and forcing her to stagger back and fall to her knees as her ability to use chakra was severely crippled temporarily. The Hyuuga prodigy didn't stop there though, and thrust his palm at the Kunoichi, slamming her with a vacuum shell that sent her flying across the arena to slam into the wall, causing cracks to form before she fell to the ground unconscious.

xXsceneXx

"Father," said Hanabi Hyuuga, Hinata's younger sister, from where she sat in the stands, "was that…?"

"Indeed," said Hiashi Hyuuga, "that was the Hakke Rokujūyon Shō and the Hakke Kūshō, two Main Branch techniques. If Neji was able to learn them on his own, then he has even greater potential than I initially assumed."

' _Hizashi,_ ' thought the Hyuuga Clan Head sadly, ' _if only you had been born first, then the clan would never have stunted such a bright young child._ '

xXsceneXx

Seeing that Karui was obviously in no condition to continue, Hayate called the match in Neji's favor and called medics to take Karui to be treated at the hospital.

"Will Rock Lee and Sasuke Uchiha report to the arena," Hayate called out as he prepared to start the next match, but, while the green clad Genin leapt into the arena, his Uchiha opponent was nowhere to be seen.

Murmurs began to pass through the crowd as they wondered what was going on, and in the Kage's Box, a similar conversation was occurring as well.

xXsceneXx

"Hmph," said A, "I'd have thought your Shinobi would be more punctual, Hokage-sama. Being late to his own match doesn't make a good impression."

Hiruzen pinched the bridge of his nose, knowing that the Uchiha's tardiness was more than likely due to Kakashi's reliability, "I'm afraid I have to excuse for this."

"Perhaps we could give Uchiha-san some leniency?" asked the Kazekage.

"Doing that would only spoil the brat," said A, "if he doesn't show up, then he should fail."

"He will have ten minutes," said Hiruzen as he shot the Kazekage a look, "that is what I will allow any combatant to have. If he exceeds that, then he will fail by default."

"If you say so, Hokage-sama," said the Kazekage.

xXsceneXx

Seven minutes passed and the crowd was getting antsy waiting for Sasuke, but luckily, he appeared right at the nine-minute mark with Kakashi standing at his side.

"Sorry we're late," said Sasuke, "but my sensei was adamant about being late and wouldn't haul his ass until I stole his porn."

Hayate sighed and shook his head, knowing about Kakashi's reputation, and motioned for Sasuke to get into position as Kakashi headed to the stands via Shunshin.

"I am glad you arrived on time," said Lee as he slid into a Gōken stance, "I have thought long and hard about what you said before the first exam, and I believe you are right. I am going to become a genius myself by pushing past my limitations while being a splendid Taijutsu Master."

"That's good to hear," said Sasuke with a smirk, surprising the green-clad Genin as he slipped into a stance that mirrored his own, "but that doesn't mean I'll go easy on you."

"I would not have it any other way," said Lee with a smile.

 

 


	27. Fanning the Flames of YOUTH!

"If both contestants are ready," said Hayate, "then BEGIN!"

As soon as the proctor started the match Lee shot forward at Sasuke and forced the Uchiha to backpedal to dodge a strong kick to his midsection. Before Sasuke could fully recover, Lee attacked with a quick series of punches and kicks that sent Sasuke tumbling back across the ground. However, just as Lee was starting to feel confident, Sasuke's beaten form was covered in a poof of smoke and replaced with a log.

"Kawarimi?" said Lee in surprise before he had to flip out of the way to avoid several Kunai that Sasuke had thrown at him from behind.

"You're fast," said Sasuke, "but I've been preparing to deal with speed like yours."

"Well then," said Lee, "I will have to try harder then.  _Konoha Senpū!_ "

Lee launched into a series of spinning roundhouse kicks that Sasuke had to dodge with another Kawarimi.

" _Katon…_ " said Sasuke as he leapt out of the trees behind Lee, " _Karyūdan!_ "

The green-clad Genin's eyes widened and he was barely able to dodge out of the way of a torrent of fire that Sasuke breathed out of his mouth, receiving some burns on is arm. Lee glanced at the burns and noted that he would still be able to fight, before turning back to his opponent.

xXsceneXx

"Sasuke-kun seems to have an excellent grasp of Katon Jutsu," noted the Kazekage as he watched the match, "though the Uchiha have been known for their Katon affinity."

"Indeed," said A, "the boy is quite skilled, but his opponent has yet to use any Ninjutsu of his own."

"Well," said Hiruzen, "it's not that he hasn't used any, but rather that he can't."

"Explain," said A, as he glanced at the Hokage, "why is a boy like him even competing if he cannot perform any Jutsu?"

"While Lee-kun has no talent in Ninjutsu or Genjutsu, he has been trained by our greatest Taijutsu master and can even rival a Hyuuga in the art," said the Hokage with pride, "he has turned a limitation into a way for him to grow ever stronger and has become a splendid Shinobi of Konoha."

"Hmph," snorted the Raikage, "I doubt a Shinobi that cannot use Ninjutsu will be able to survive for very long, but let's just see."

' _Indeed,_ ' thought Hiruzen as he went back to watching the match, ' _after all, your own fighting style relies mostly on Taijutsu, Raikage-dono._ '

xXsceneXx

Back in the arena, Lee rolled to his feet after dodging a Gōkakyū no Jutsu from Sasuke and caught his breath as he tried to think up another move.

' _I cannot get close enough to Sasuke-kun to use any Taijutsu,_ ' he thought, ' _and if I can't get past his Ninjutsu, I won't be able to win._ '

"LEE!" yelled Guy from the Jonin section of the stands, "TAKE THEM OFF!"

Lee turned to the stands and almost got blasted by another Katon Jutsu from Sasuke.

"Lee," said Sasuke, "you won't get the chance to ask your Sensei for permission in a real combat setting. If you need to do something, then do it."

Lee hesitated before nodding and reaching down to his leg warmers. He pulled them up to reveal several sets of training weights with the kanji for GUTS written on them. Sasuke raised an eyebrow as he watched Lee, musing that, while Lee hadn't been moving at full power, a few dropped pounds wouldn't make a difference.

The resulting crater formed when Lee tossed the weights aside quickly changed his mind.

"Ah," said Lee, "now I can move freely. Let us continue."

Sasuke barely had a moment to react before Lee shot at him, moving so fast that he was only a blur, landing a powerful kick that knocked Sasuke back.

" _DYNAMIC ENTRY!_ " yelled Lee as the kick made contact and sent Sasuke flying across the ground.

"Shit!" swore Sasuke as he got to his feet and was knocked back again as Lee attacked him again and again. He even activated his Sharingan to see if he could track the teen…and upon receiving a fist across the jaw that he could see but not react to in time answered that question.

"Ok," said Sasuke as he flipped hack and cracked his jaw back into place, "that answers that question."

Moving his hands into a Ram sign and cut the Chakra flowing into his Training Bands, removing the resistance the bands placed against his movements, causing the Uchiha to smirk as he blocked Lee's next kick with his arm, moving fast enough to counter now that he had removed his own 'weights.'

"Round two then," said Sasuke before he shot off in a blur at the Green-Clad Genin.

The two of them clashed in a battle of Taijutsu at speeds so fast that only the Shinobi in the audience that were trained to track such speeds.

"You are skilled Sasuke-kun," said Lee as he blocked a flurry of punches that Sasuke sent at him, "I did not expect you to be wearing weights as well."

"You gotta go the extra mile if you want to grow," said Sasuke as he dodged away from a kick Lee tried to plant into his stomach, "but I think this match is about over."

"Indeed," said Lee as he flipped back, "for I too have a trump card.  _Kaimon: Kai!_ "

xXsceneXx

"Guy," said Kakashi, "you didn't…"

"Heh," smirked Guy, "you didn't think that I would just teach him the Gōken technique? Lee is like me and I trained him to become the best Taijutsu user that he can be."

"But teaching a Genin the to open Eight Gates," said Kakashi, "how many can he open?"

"Five," said Guy, "at his level, he can open five of the eight. I have my faith that he will prevail."

"Well," said Kakashi, " _my_ student is quite impressive as well."

xXsceneXx

' _What is he doing?_ ' thought Sasuke as he watched Lee with his Sharingan, ' _His Chakra just spiked like crazy!_ '

"I will not quit," said Lee, "not ever!  _Kyūmon: Kai! Seimon: KAI!_ "

"What the?!" exclaimed Sasuke as he saw Lee's skin turn red as the ground cracked from the chakra flowing around him.

"I will become a great Shinobi!" yelled Lee, " _Shōmon: KAI!_ "

Sasuke's eyes widened as he saw Lee's Chakra spike even more and he quickly made a ram seal and channeled his chakra.

"I WILL WIN!" declared Lee, " _TOMON: KAI!_ "

Sasuke barely had a moment to react before Lee was in front of him. The Green-Clad Genin quickly delivered a powerful kick that sent Sasuke flying into the air before he leapt up and delivered a barrage of kicks and punches at inhuman speeds, ending with a punch-kick combo that sent the Uchiha crashing into the center of the arena, with Lee falling to the ground next to him.

"Heh," chuckled Sasuke weakly, "that was good…but I've won."

"What do you mean?" grunted Lee from where he lay prone.

Sasuke only smiled and his body vanished like a mirage to show the real Sasuke standing by the arena wall with his Sharingan active.

"Genjutsu…" said Lee before unconsciousness claimed him.

"Rock Lee is unable to continue," said Hayate, "the winner is Sasuke Uchiha!"

xXsceneXx

"Heh, an excellent strategy," smirked A as he watched the outcome, "using the brat's own strength against him."

"I do hope he continues to impress, Hokage-sama," said the Kazekage.

"As do I," said Hiruzen as he watched the Kazekage's bodyguards out of the corner of his eye, "as do I."

 

 


	28. Second Round: Fate vs Faith

The arena erupted with cheers for Sasuke, and, much to the Uchiha's dismay, the cries of his fan club were heard shrieking his name through the applause. With a sigh, Sasuke walked back to the competitor's area and watched as the rest of the matches. What followed was a pair of quick battles, with Choji being shocked by several Raiton Jutsu and held at sword point by a Kumo Shinobi and Hinata pounding Ino's fangirl ass into the ground when she accidentally insulted Naruto by saying he was holding Sasuke back.

Once the arena had been cleared from the last match Hayate stepped forward to address the gathered audience, "Now that the first round is over, I will explain how the following rounds will be structured. The rest of the tournament will be arranged through random selection. Please turn your attention to our selector screen."

The audience and the competitors turned to look at a screen situated above the arena's combat area and watched as different pairs of pictures flickered across the screen randomly until the Konoha ID photos of Neji and Hinata Hyuuga were displayed on the screen.

"The first match is between Neji Hyuuga and Hinata Hyuuga," said Hayate, "will the two combatants please enter the arena?"

The audience watched as the two Hyuuga took their places in the arena, their inactive Byakugan staring into each other as they waited.

"Just give up," said Neji, "you have no chance of winning here. Fate has already decreed that I will emerge victorious."

"Neji-niisan," said Hinata, "why do you think Fates cannot be changed? You yourself are fighting to change your own Fate."

Neji shook his head, "Those who are born into success will succeed. Those who are born failures will always be that. You are weak, and as such, you will not beat me."

"Fighters ready?" said Hayate, "BEGIN!"

" _Byakugan!_ " said Neji and Hinata as they activated their Doujutsu and closed the distance between the two of them.

Neji began to attack with a flurry of Juuken strikes, but much to his surprise, Hinata fluidly dodged out of the way before landing a strike of her own onto one of his own tenketsu, causing the elder Hyuuga to wince in pain as the tenketsu was sealed off.

"I see you've begun using a bastardization of the Juuken," said Neji as he flexed his arm to try and shake off the pain, "typical of a failure."

"Is it a failure when you adapt to fit the circumstances?" asked Hinata before she rushed at Neji and begun her offensive.

Hinata attacked Neji with several Juuken strikes that he parried with ease, but when he moved to counter her, she used her natural flexibility and agility to flow around her cousin's blows and would have nearly landed several blows to his Tenketsu if Neji hadn't managed to parry the attack and close three points on her arms.

Hinata was not daunted by this and attacked again, flowing past Neji's defenses and striking several of the Tenketsu on his torso, causing him to stagger back.

"Neji-niisan," said Hinata, "I will show you that we are not bound to our fate, and have the ability to make our own choices."

"Unlikely," said Neji, "you may have a new form of Juuken that allows you to counter the original, but a loser will always remain one."

Neji quickly attacked Hinata, forcing her on the defensive as he unleashed a ferocious barrage of strikes that she was only barely able to dodge using her new style of Juuken. Unfortunately, her advantage came to an end and Neji landed several strikes on her heart, causing her to go up in smoke due to Kawarimi, leaving a small ball that promptly exploded, causing Neji to get a face full of pepper. As he tried to clear his eyes, Hinata leapt at him from behind and, as he turned, she knocked him off balance.

Hinata then struck at her elder cousin with a series of fluid Juuken blows that he was hard pressed to dodge due to her utilizing her natural agility and flexibility to force Neji into a defensive position as her strikes were hard to predict and avoid, even with his Byakugan. Seeing that he had no choice, Neji expelled chakra outward from his active Tenketsu and spinning in his spot, causing the chakra to rotate around him violently, forming a sphere that knocked Hinata back.

xXsceneXx

"Hizashi," murmured Hiashi, "if only I were born second. Neji has so much promise and raw talent, it is a shame he is forced to remain in the Branch Family."

"Tou-sama," said Hanabi from her place next to her father, "How did Neji-niisama learn that technique? Isn't it only taught to the Main Branch?"

"Indeed," said Hiashi, "it is likely he learned it thorough mere observation and vast amounts of raw skill and practice. He is truly one of the most gifted prodigies to come from the Hyuuga clan in generations."

Hanabi's eyes widened and she turned her attention onto the fight, activating her Byakugan so she wouldn't miss a moment.

xXsceneXx

Hinata quickly recovered from being thrown back and flipped backward to avoid being struck by her cousin, and to put some space between them before she made several hand-seals.

" _Suiton: Teppōdama!_ " yelled Hinata before she spat out several spheres of water that flew quickly toward her cousin at high speed.

Neji simply narrowed his eyes and began the Rotation again, blocking the attack with the spinning barrier of chakra. Coming to a stop, he faced the heiress with a look of disdain.

"To think that you have to resort to Ninjutsu to gain an upper hand," he scoffed, "how far the Main Branch has fallen."

"Ninjutsu is a Shinobi skill," countered Hinata, "and we  _are_  Shinobi.  _Futon: Renkūdan!_ "

Hinata spat another blast at her cousin, this time being of highly compressed wind. Once again, Neji used he Rotation to block the attack, but this time there was a difference. This time, when the blast of air impacting the spiraling barrier, the bullet exploded. Violently. The resulting blast knocked the teen out of his technique and sent him tumbling across the dirt ground.

As he got to his feet, he didn't have much time to recover, as Hinata quickly threw several kunai with flash-bang bombs attached to the ring on the hilt, forcing Neji to use a Kawarimi to dodge.

Neji scowled before charging at Hinata with chakra practically glowing from his palm.

Neji buried his hand into Hinata's gut, causing her eyes to widen in pain…before she was replaced with a splintered log wrapped with glowing seal tags. Neji saw the seals and hastily deactivated his Byakugan as the flash-bomb seals wrapped around the log were triggered, enveloping the elder Hyuuga in an intense light. Had he not deactivated his Doujutsu, he would have caught the blinding flash in his eyes, made worse by the enhanced visual prowess of his eyes.

When the Hyuuga opened his eyes, he saw Hinata closing in aiming a Juuken strike at him. Frowning, he dodged her strike and grabbed her arm to keep her from escaping before slamming a strike of his own into her heart. Much to his surprise, Hinata went up in a poof of smoke, revealing her to be a Kage Bunshin.

" _Hakke,_ " Neji heard from behind him, making his eyes widen as he realized that he had forgotten to reactivate his Byakugan after defending against the makeshift flash bomb, " _Sanjūni Shō!_ "

Neji quickly activated his eyes, but wasn't able to move in time to avoid Hinata's attack. Hinata quickly struck at his Tenketsu, sealing them off, causing him to stagger forward and fall to the ground.

xXsceneXx

"An impressive strategy," said the Kazekage, "utilizing a flash bomb to disable the Byakugan before capitalizing on that advantage with the use of Kage Bunshin."

"Heh," said A, "the girl is skilled, though she uses more techniques than the normal Hyuuga. She's the heiress, right?"

"Indeed," said Hiruzen carefully, remembering the incident years ago where one of the Raikage's men had orchestrated the kidnapping of said heiress in an attempt to gain access to the Byakugan.

"Bah," snorted the Raikage as he caught Hiruzen's tone, "I have no interest in that girl. It was my father that arranged for her kidnapping and I objected to that plan."

"I see," said Hiruzen.

"But despite the failings of my predecessor," said A, "the girl shows a good amount of skill. Hell, even the other Hyuuga brat does as well."

"Yes," Hiruzen, "he does. He apparently learned several of the main branch techniques through skill and observation alone."

"Interesting," said the Kazekage, "truly he is an impressive Shinobi then, regardless of his loss."

Hiruzen merely glanced at the Kazekage and his guards in silence, knowing there were hidden motives behind the man's words.

xXsceneXx

"H-how?" gasped Neji from where he lay on the ground.

"Neji-niisan," said Hinata, "you said that we are bound by our Fates, but you yourself have fought to break free without even realizing it. Wouldn't most say that it is the fate of the Branch Family to stand in the shadow of the Main Branch? Yet you stand tall and have shown yourself to be a strong Shinobi, having mastered two of the Main Branch's secret techniques through pure skill and determination. Many see the Branch Family as a caged bird that longs to fly, but I think you have already shattered your cage and spread your wings. I became strong just like you did, by not being bound by my status or weaknesses and pushing past them. I will never give up, that is my Nindo, my Ninja way. Will you persevere as well?"

"Tch," scoffed Neji, but he remained silent.

"Since Neji is unable to battle, I pronounce Hinata Hyuuga to be the winner," said Hayate.

The audience erupted in cheers and several medics carried Neji off the field and to the hospital to be treated. As the audience calmed down, Hiashi slipped away and headed to have a long awaited talk with his nephew.

xXsceneXx

"Could she be right?" muttered Neji as he lay in a hospital bed, bandaged and attached to an IV drip.

He was interrupted from his musings by the opening of the door to his room and when he looked, he saw the Clan Head, Hiashi Hyuuga standing there.

"Neji," said Hiashi, "it's time we had a talk."

 


	29. Clashing Weapons

Once the arena had been cleared of combatants, Hayate walked back to the center and activated the match randomizer. The audience watched with anticipation as the names of the combatants flashed across the screen before coming to a rest on two.

"The next match," said Hayate, "will be between Sasuke Uchiha and Masamune Tenten. Will both combatants please enter the arena."

As Sasuke faced his opponent, he couldn't help but feel a bit eager for this fight. This girl was unlike any of the other Kunoichi in the village, she possessed none of their fangirl tendencies and instead held herself with confidence and worked to better her skills, or so Kakashi had told him when he asked about Lee's teammates.

"Looks like we'll be facing each other after all," said Tenten, "I admit I've been hoping to see more of that sword of yours."

"My my," said Sasuke with a teasing smirk, "that is a rather forward remark. We barely know each other."

Upon looking back at what she had just said and spotting the double-innuendo, Tenten blushed as pink as her outfit before sputtering, "I DIDN'T MEAN THAT!"

Chuckling a bit, Sasuke unsheathed Kyuketsuki and held it in a ready pose as he activated his Sharingan, "I know."

"Hmph," muttered Tenten with a light blush as she unsealed a kusarigama and spun the chain, "just for that, I'm not going to go easy on you."

"If both fighters are ready," said Hayate, "then BEGIN!"

Upon hearing the proctor give the signal to start, Tenten leapt back to put some distance between her and her opponent, before hurling several shuriken at Sasuke with pinpoint accuracy. Luckily for the Uchiha, his training with Kakashi had helped his reaction time, so, by activating his Sharingan, he was able to deflect the incoming weapons with the edge of his sword. Tenten didn't give him much time to counter though, as she threw several Kunai that had Explosive tags attached. The resulting explosion engulfed Sasuke in fire and smoke, but when the air cleared, all that was seen was a splintered log.

"Where'd you go?" muttered Tenten.

" _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ " yelled Sasuke as he leapt out of the trees behind Tenten and spat a large fireball at the enemy Kunoichi.

"Shit!" swore Tenten as she spun around and unsealed a large club that she used to block the flames, before sealing it away and unsealing two kodachi and lunging at Sasuke.

Sasuke quickly drew the blade he had claimed in battle and deflected the girl's slashes, but still got a few cuts from the slashes that got past his defenses.

"Looks like first blood is mine," said Tenten as their blades clashed again.

"Don't be so happy about it," said Sasuke as he broke the clash and took some of the blood from a cut and spread it on the blade, "time for my surprise."

Suddenly, lightning covered the blade of Kyuketsuki, and Sasuke held it at the ready, "You like?"

Tenten had to keep herself from squealing in excitement at seeing the abilities of the legendary sword from Kumo. While she was most certainly a Kunoichi and not a fangirl, she was however, a weapon nerd.

"It can actually do that?" she said eagerly, "What else can that sword do?"

"Let me show you," said Sasuke as he rushed at the girl.

Tenten quickly resealed her swords and threw several shuriken at the Uchiha, but he simply swung his sword to intercept them, slicing through the metal stars with ease thanks to the lightning coating the blade.

"Impressive," said Tenten.

"You haven't seen anything yet," said Sasuke as he adjusted his grip so that he could make a hand seal, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

"Wait, what?" exclaimed Tenten as three Kage Bunshin appeared in a poof of smoke.

"What did you expect?" asked one Sasuke with a smirk as the clones and him readied their swords, "with how much Naruto loves the Jutsu, how could I  _not_  pick it up?"

Sasuke and his copies then rushed at Tenten, all of them wielding lightning covered swords, prompting her to curse, "well, shit."

The kunoichi was forced onto the defensive, as now she faced attacks from four opponents, each of them wielding a lightning covered sword. She managed to land a solid hit on one, causing it to dispel, but the other two quickly made several hand-seals.

" _Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu!_ " yelled the Kage Bunshin, sending a barrage of fireballs at Tenten.

"Damnit," swore Tenten as she made to dodge.

xXsceneXx

"The Uchiha boy is quite skilled," said the Kazekage, "he shows skill in controlling the flow of the battle."

"Indeed," said Hiruzen as he watched Tenten weave through the onslaught of fireballs that Sasuke and his Bunshin were shooting at her, "but his opponent is proving to be most competent as well."

"She has to be to go against Kyuketsuki," said A, "how did Konoha come to possess the Cursed Bloodsucking Sword anyway? Kumo has had it reported lost for decades."

"Well," said Hiruzen, "apparently, it was in the possession of a missing-nin that was dealt with by Sasuke's team. The Uchiha probably claimed the sword after defeating its owner."

"Hmph," grunted A. He obviously wasn't happy, as he wanted Kumo to reclaim their property, but he couldn't really dispute that the brat had a claim on it as a spoil of war. Kumo had taken better things from other villages for less.

"In any case," said the Kazekage, "Sasuke-kun seems to have the advantage, despite his opponent being older and hopefully more experienced than him."

"Masamune-san is indeed his senior by a year," nodded Hiruzen, "her team had the chance to enter the exams last year, but they chose to postpone in favor of sharpening their skills."

"She may be skilled, but I have confidence in the boy," said the Kazekage.

"Indeed," said Hiruzen again as he glanced at the Kazekage carefully.

xXsceneXx

"That's it," said Tenten as she finished dodging the fireballs and back flipped several times to put some distance between her and Sasuke, "I'm ending this."

Pulling out two scrolls, the weapon wielding kunoichi placed them upright next to her before making several hand-seals, " _Sōshōryū!_ "

The scrolls exploded with smoke, before they spiraled upward and unfurled, resembling two twisting serpentine dragons. The kunoichi then leapt up out of the smoke, rising between the scrolls, before reaching for the scrolls and unsealing a weapon for each hand and hurling it at Sasuke and his clones, repeating the process until she unleashed a rain of bladed weapons was descending on Sasuke. The Uchiha barely had time to react as swords, kunai, shuriken, Kusarigama, and various other weapons, flew at him in a rain of death.

When the smoke from the attack cleared, Sasuke's bruised and bleeding body was seen sprawled on the ground, causing several dozen members of his fan club to faint in the stands.

"That's that," said Tenten as she landed on her feet, but suddenly, the 'corpse' vanished in a poof of smoke revealing it to be a Kage Bunshin, "What the?!"

Before she could react, Sasuke appeared in front of her, within her guard, in a burst of speed, having removed his resistance seals in the confusion when he switched with one of his copies, and slammed a kick to the underside of her chin, sending Tenten flying into the air.

"My turn," said Sasuke before leaping up after her, "I'll be borrowing this, Lee."

Sasuke rose up to Tenten as she flew up from his kick and grabbed he her shirt before spinning in midair and landing several aerial strikes, resembling an attack that a certain spandex wearing Genin had used in a previous match.

" _Lion's Barrage!_ " yelled Sasuke as he finished with a kick that sent the girl smashing into the ground before landing softly next to her.

Hayate walked up and noted that Tenten was in no condition to continue before raising his hand, "Masamune Tenten is unable to battle. The winner of this round is Uchiha Sasuke."

Sasuke reached down and carefully picked Tenten up, getting a groan from the older Genin.

"It was a good fight," said the Uchiha.

"Not good enough," muttered Tenten.

"Maybe you and I can train more when you get out of the hospital," said Sasuke, "I'd like to learn some of those tricks you used."

"Maybe," chuckled Tenten as she was put on a stretcher, "just don't lose to anyone else."

"I don't intend to," smirked Sasuke before he went to take his place on the stands.

Once the weapons had been cleared from the arena, the randomizer was set again, but when it came to a stop, whispered murmurs swept through the stadium at the matchup shown on the screen.

"Well," said Naruto, "looks like it's my turn-ttebayo."

Naruto Uzumaki Uchiha vs Sabaku no Gaara

 

 


	30. Spiraling Sands

As Naruto walked into the arena, he could practically taste the bloodlust that was radiating off Gaara as the redhead stood across from him. As he faced his opponent, he took in the teen's bloodshot eyes and the dark rings under them, and saw a person on the brink of insanity.

' _This isn't going to be easy,_ ' thought Naruto.

" **Oi Gaki,** " said the Kyuubi from within Naruto's seal, " **be careful about that Suna-ningen. I can smell the power of a Bijū coming off of him. Specifically the Ichibi Tanuki, Shukaku.** "

' _You mean he's like me?_ ' asked Naruto mentally, ' _He's a Jinchuuriki?_ '

" **Mm,** " grunted the Kyuubi in acknowledgement, " **and unlike you, the seal holding his Bijū in is shit. Judging by the looks of him, that bastard Tanuki has been eating away at his sanity and he's about ready to snap. Be on your guard with him. If you die, I die too after all.** "

"Got it," said Naruto before glancing at Gaara, who was looking at him as if measuring his worth.

"Mother want's your blood," said Gaara, "I will kill you here and prove my existence."

"You need serious help," said Naruto, "the voice in your head isn't your mother."

"No," said Gaara, "you won't confuse me. Mother will have your blood!"

"Guess some messages need to be beaten into their skulls," said Naruto as he got into a stance.

"BEGIN!" yelled Hayate before he jumped clear.

Naruto quickly initiated combat by pulling out several shuriken that he threw at Gaara with pinpoint accuracy, but if he expected the Suna Genin to react, he would be surprised as Gaara simply stood there and gazed at the incoming weapons dismissively. As the weapons were about to strike the teen, a tendril of sand shot from the gourd on his back and knocked the weapons out of the air.

"What the?" exclaimed Naruto, "Sand?"

" **Gaki, watch out!** " yelled the Kyuubi from within the seal, causing Naruto to jump away just in time to avoid getting grabbed by the sand tendril.

The blond Jinchuuriki flipped back several feet to put some distance between the two of them before forming a cross hand-seal, " _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ "

Naruto created a group of Kage Bunshin and had them rush at Gaara from different angles, but the opposing Genin was once again defended by the sand in his gourd as it shot out and wrapped around the Bunshin, lifting them up into the air.

" _Sabaku Kyū!_ " declared Gaara as he raised his hand before clenching it into a fist, " _Sabaku Sōsō!_ "

The sand surrounding the Kage Bunshin suddenly compressed, crushing the life out of the copies and causing them to dispel in poofs of smoke. Naruto paled as he saw this, as he realized that if that happened to him, it would be game over. Permanently.

The blond didn't have much time to contemplate this, as more sand shot from the gourd and flew toward him along with the sand used to crush his Bunshin. Naruto made several hand-seals as he dodged the sand, before taking a deep breath and raising his hand to his mouth.

" _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ " yelled Naruto before breathing out a stream of fire that slammed into the sand, fusing some of it into steaming glass, but the sand that managed to escape the onslaught simply flowed over the fused portions and flew at Naruto.

"Crap," swore the blond as he had to quickly dodge out of the way, creating a Kage Bunshin to launch him out of the way as the sand flowed over the Bunshin and crushed it, "gotta try something different.

Making several more hand-seals, Naruto channeled his immense chakra reserves in preparation for his next Jutsu, " _Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!_ "

Naruto took a deep breath and spat out a torrent of water that transformed into a dragon shape and slammed into the incoming sand, soaking it with water and causing it to fall to the ground in a heap.

xXsceneXx

"That brat," said the Raikage, "he's able to use a high-level Suiton Ninjutsu without any additional source of water? Just how much raw chakra does he have?"

"Naruto-kun has always had much more chakra than the normal Shinobi," said Hiruzen, "if I were to guess at his current reserves, I would assume them to be somewhere around High-Jonin to Low-Kage approximately."

The Kazekage's eyes widened at that revelation. To think that a mere Genin could have such vast reserves of Chakra at such a young age.

"That's pretty impressive," said the Raikage, "but the brat he's fighting doesn't seem to be any slouch either. He hasn't moved one inch and from where he started, and yet still hasn't taken any damage from his opponent's attacks."

"Indeed," said the Kazekage, "Gaara is one of Suna's most promising Shinobi. The entire desert is his to command, and the sand will automatically shield him from any harm."

"Most intriguing," said Hiruzen as he watched the match, "so his sand moves without him having to summon it?"

"Yes," said the Kazekage, "I'm afraid your Genin won't be able to pull off a victory here."

"We'll see," said Hiruzen, "I've learned not to bet against Naruto-kun."

xXsceneXx

"So," said Naruto with a smirk, "water turns your sand into mud. Good to know."

"That knowledge will do you no good," said Gaara as he raised his hand toward Naruto, "mother will still have your blood."

"And how will you do that without any sand?" asked Naruto.

Gaara chose not to respond and instead gestured with his extended hand, causing sand to explode from the ground around Naruto, wrapping around him and blocking his escape.

' _Shit,_ ' thought Naruto, ' _I didn't know he could create sand from the ground!_ '

"Now it's over," said Gaara as the sand flowed tightly around Naruto's body, " _Sabaku Kyū!_ "

"Gotta think of something," muttered Naruto as the sand tightened its grip, "I'll have to use it."

" _Sabaku…_ " said Gaara as he prepared to end the match.

" _Shinra Tensei!_ " yelled Naruto as he blasted the sand away from his body using his Rinnegan, causing him to drop to the ground with the Rinnegan blazing in his eyes.

xXsceneXx

"Those eyes," breathed the Raikage as he saw Naruto's Doujutsu, "Hiruzen, you never said one of your Genin had the eyes of the Rikudō Sennin."

"It is a rather recent development and a tightly guarded secret," said the Hokage sharply, "and if you or your village even thinks about taking him, I will not be merciful."

"Hmph," scoffed A, "no need to worry, old man, if the Rinnegan was so easy to acquire, we would have had it years ago."

"Even still," said the Kazekage, "to think the boy had such an ability hidden away, he has great potential, Hokage-sama."

"Indeed," said Hiruzen, "I have high hopes for him and the rest of Team 7. They have shown much promise as Shinobi."

"I see…" said the Kazekage as he turned his attention back to the match.

xXsceneXx

"Impossible," breathed Gaara as he watched Naruto counter his signature attack.

"My turn," said Naruto as he created two Kage Bunshin, " _Futon: Daitoppa!_ "

" _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ " yelled Naruto's bunshin as the y breathed out torrents of fire.

The flames from the Kage Bunshin mixed with the blast of wind that Naruto breathed out, transforming into a massive firestorm that streaked toward Gaara. His sand automatically rose up to intercept the flames, and was once against fused into glass as it blocked the onslaught. Three tendrils of sand rose up and stabbed through Naruto and his clones, but instead of seeing the blond die, all three of them disappeared in poofs of smoke, revealing them to be Kage Bunshin as well.

"What?!" Said Gaara in surprise before Naruto burst out of the ground behind the Suna Jinchuuriki and slammed a punch into his face.

xXsceneXx

"No way," breathed Kankuro from where he was watching in the stands, "he hit Gaara."

"This could get really bad really quick," muttered Baki, the Sand Siblings' Jonin-sensei.

The assembled Suna Shinobi watched the battle with tense nerves, hoping that it wouldn't come to a point where Gaara would be inclined to release Shukaku. They had yet to see the signal to commence the invasion, and if they acted early, they risked their allies from Otogakure abandoning them to fend for themselves. It was times like this that made Baki questioned the Yondaime Kazekage's decision to ally with Oto and betray Konoha.

"As long as the boy doesn't break through Gaara's secondary defense, we should be fine," said Baki as he watched the fight.

xXsceneXx

Naruto frowned as he flipped backwards to avoid several tendrils of sand that had shot at him and glanced at his red knuckles. Punching Gaara had felt like punching stone and Naruto could've sworn he heard a cracking sound when his fist made contact. Glancing back at Gaara, Naruto was surprised to see that the teen's skin had chipped and cracked away where he had been hit, but sand was flowing to the affected area to repair the damage.

"What is that?" gasped Naruto.

" **If I was to guess,** " said the Kyuubi from within Naruto, " **I would say that it's a layer of hardened sand covering his body like a second skin and acting as a suit of armor.** "

"Just perfect," grumbled Naruto, "I gotta break through that as well?"

" **Seems so,** " said the Kyuubi, " **now MOVE!** "

Naruto jumped out of the way as more sand tried to capture him, resorting to using his Rinnegan to blast some of the sand away to keep from getting crushed.

"Perish!" growled Gaara as he raised a wall of sand to block an attack from a Kage Bunshin that Naruto sent at the Suna Shinobi, " _Suna Shuriken!_ "

Gaara swung a tendril of sand and sent dozens of shuriken made of hardened sand at the blond Genin, causing Naruto to have to frantically dodge, but still get a few cuts across his body from the weapons that he couldn't.

"Any suggestions you damn Fox?" growled Naruto as he dodged more tendrils of sand.

" **Watch your tone, brat,** " growled the Kyuubi.

"Oh shut it!" yelled Naruto before he spat out a torrent of water to block a wave of sand, "Do you  _want_  me to die?"

" **Hmph,** " grunted the fox, " **you'll have to hit him hard and fast. You'll need to hit him hard and fast to break through that Sand Armor of his. If you can get close enough, then the Jutsu the Toad-ningen taught you might help.** "

"But I have to get close enough," said Naruto, "and to hit him hard enough…I have an idea."

Naruto made several Kage Bunshin that rushed at Gaara, dodging waves of sand that moved to crush them as they got closer to the redhead. Several times, the Kage Bunshin used their Shinra Tensei technique to get close enough by blasting sand away, until they were finally close enough to land several punches to the other Jinchuuriki, causing him to stagger back.

" _U-Chi-Ha…_ " yelled the Bunshin as they punched Gaara from various directions, before the original appeared, leaping over Gaara with a spiraling sphere of Chakra in his right hand, a hazy sphere of distortion surrounding the technique, helping to hold it's shape.

" _Naruto Rasengan Barrage!_ " yelled the original as he slammed the sphere in his hand into a wall of sand that had risen up to shield Gaara from his attack.

The shield of sand was blasted aside when Naruto used the Shinra Tensei he had used to contain his Rasengan to blast outward and clear the sand away, allowing the blond to slam his somewhat-complete Rasengan into Gaara's body.

It was fortunate that Gaara's Sand Armor was as tough as it was, or he would have likely had a hole torn in his body from the attack. Regardless, he was slammed into the ground as his armor shattered along with several of his ribs, causing him to cough up blood as Naruto ended the attack and landed next to him.

"You know," said Naruto, "we aren't that much different. We both carry an immense burden and have more than the average person's worth of 'inner demons.' I could have ended up hating the world and seeking blood to 'prove my existence' but I don't need to, because I have friends and family to keep me grounded. In fact, you have that too. If it means anything, I'd be happy to be your friend and show you the light hidden in the darkness."

"Y-you…" ground out Gaara, "…w-why?"

"Because," said Naruto, "out of everyone here, I understand you the most. Maybe we can have someone look at your seal so you can get some peace?"

Gaara's eyes widened at the prospect before he lost the fight to remain conscious and slumped to the ground, finding a peace that had escaped him for years in sleep.

"Winner," declared Hayate, "Naruto Uzumaki Uchiha."

 

 


	31. Wind and Lightning

**Naruto Uchiha**

**Chapter 31**

**So I’m back and here’s the next chapter in the Chunin Exam arc. Btw, I’ve put a poll on my profile to help decide how I’m going to do the second half of the series. Please look it over and vote, as it will help me a lot**

**Anyways.**

**Disclaimer: I own nothing.**

As Naruto walked back to the stands, the Suna Shinobi had to gape as their greatest Shinobi weapon was carried off to the medical wing to be treated, knowing from the looks of his injuries, that he wouldn’t be able to participate in the upcoming invasion.

“That technique,” said the Raikage as the field was cleared of debris for the next match, “that was the Yondaime Hokage’s Rasengan. Why does that boy know it?”

“The Yondaime’s teacher was the one who trained him for these exams,” said Hiruzen, “I believe he taught him many things.”

“Hmmm,” said A, “the boy bears a passing resemblance to the Yellow Flash.”

“Merely a coincidence,” said the Hokage, “He is hardly the only blond Shinobi in our village.”

“True,” said the Kazekage, “and besides, wouldn’t the rest of Konoha know if that were the case?”

“Perhaps we should focus on the next match,” said Hiruzen, “Shinobi from your villages are up.”

The two Kage nodded and turned their attention to the arena, where Temari and Omoi were preparing to battle.

xXsceneXx

“This is great,” sighed the Kumo Shinobi, “if I lose here then Karui will beat me up and then B-sensei will find out and I’ll have to listen to his raps again without end until I start humming it in my sleep, leading me to do so when I’m out with a girl, causing her to break up with me and tell all her friends, and they’ll tell all their friends, which will eventually spread to all the girls in Kumo, meaning that I won’t ever get a date after that and I’ll probably end up sad and alone with only my sword to keep me company and kids will come by and laugh at me when I’m an old man and alone crying into my beer…”

“Will you shut up?” yelled Temari with several tic marks on her forehead, “Seriously, you’re even more annoying than that pineapple-haired-lazy-ass! Can we just begin this?”

“If both combatants are ready,” said Hayate, “BEGIN!”

Temari quickly unfolded her fan partially and swung it at the Kumo Shinobi, sending a mighty gale of wind at him using her affinity for Futon Chakra. The blast of wind slammed into the Kumo-nin, but instead of sending him flying, his body exploded into a poof of smoke, revealing him to have replaced himself with a Kage Bunshin.

“Where’d you go?” muttered Temari.

“ _Kumo-Ryū Damashigiri!_ ” yelled Omoi as he appeared behind Temari, swinging his sword.

Temari was barely able to bring her fan up to block the attack, yet it still sent her tumbling across the dirt due to the force behind it.

“Damnit,” growled the Suna Kunoichi as she rolled to her feet and fully unfurled her fan, “but you shouldn’t have put distance between us. _Kamaitachi no Jutsu!_ ”

Temari swung her fan hard, sending a powerful blast of wind at the Kumo Shinobi, the blast containing several vacuum blades that tore through the arena as they streaked towards the Kumo Shinobi at high speed. Omoi was barely able to make several hand seals as the gale slammed into him, but it was enough to activate a Kawarimi, allowing him to safely substitute with a log that was subsequently destroyed.

Temari quickly checked her surroundings before spinning and bringing her fan up to block a strike from Omoi’s katana. Unfortunately for her, the Kumo Shinobi had charged his weapon with Raiton Chakra and the energy shocked the Kunoichi, forcing her to drop her weapon before getting kicked in the gut, sending her flying back.

“Tricky bastard,” said Temari as she pulled out several kunai.

Infusing the blades with Futon Chakra, Temari threw them at her opponent with deadly accuracy. Omoi quickly sheathed his katana and threw several of his own Kunai, aiming to deflect Temari’s, but the Futon chakra coating the Kunoichi’s blades sliced through Omoi’s Kunai, forcing him to have to dodge out of the way to keep from getting impaled, giving Temari enough time to dive forward and grab her fan.

The Kunoichi unfurled her fan as she rolled to her feet and swung it at Omoi, sending another blast of wind at the Kumo Shinobi that sent him flying back across the ground.

“ _Raiton: Raigeki!_ ” yelled Omoi as he jumped to his feet and made several hand-seals.

Omoi blasted a bolt of lightning from his hands that streaked toward Temari, forcing the Kunoichi to dodge, allowing him to make several more hand-seals, causing several spheres of electricity to appear around him.

“ _Raiton: Raikyū!_ ” yelled Omoi, sending the spheres flying at the girl.

Temari flipped out of the way but the spheres exploded when they hit the ground, sending the blond Kunoichi tumbling across the dirt as the shockwave hit her. As Temari tried to recover, Omoi took the initiative to dash into the trees at the edges of the stadium to get some time to plan.

“Damnit,” said Temari as she regained her bearings, “where is he now?”

Just as she said that, several kunai coated in Raiton Chakra flew from the trees and sliced through a lock of her hair as she leaned out of the way, before embedding themselves deep in the dirt.

“Hmph,” smirked Temari, “thought the trees would give you protection? We’ll see.”

Temari unfurled her fan to it’s maximum spread, revealing three purple circles emblazoned on it, before swinging the weapon, sending a massive blast of wind containing several dozen Vacuum blades at the trees where the enemy Shinobi was hiding.

“ _Daikamaitachi no Jutsu!_ ”

The attack sliced through the trees, leaving gashes in the wood, before slamming into Omoi, sending the Kumo Shinobi flying back with several slices across his body, eventually slamming against the stone wall of the arena with enough force to knock him out. Once the gale force winds died down, Omoi fell to the ground in a slump.

Hayate jumped down and, upon seeing that the Kumo Shinobi was out cold with a possible concussion, raised his hand to call the match.

“Winner: Temari!” yelled the Tokubetsu Jonin before coughing slightly.

Medics came and carried off Omoi while Temari smirked and headed off the field with her head held high in victory.

xXsceneXx

As the arena was cleared, several of the people in the audience were discussing the match.

“Gotta admit,” said Asuma as he lit a cigarette, “that girl has a gift for Futon techniques.”

“Well,” said Kakashi, “Kaze no Kuni is known for its Futon users. I’m more surprised that the Kazekage’s son uses Sand techniques instead.”

“The Raikage’s Shinobi was quite skilled as well,” said Guy, “it’s a shame that he seemed to specialize more in close combat, while his opponent excelled in ranged attacks.”

“It just means he’ll have to work so he’s not overly specialized,” said Asuma with a smirk, “I’m sure you of all people understand that, Guy.”

“Of course,” said Guy, “I wouldn’t be able to match my Eternal Rival if I only focused on Taijutsu, eh Kakashi?”

“Did you say something Guy?” asked Kakashi.

“Damn your hip attitude!” grumbled Guy.

“Quiet,” said Kurenai, “they’re about to announce the next combatants.”

As the randomizer stopped on its selection, the Konoha Shinobi wondered what kind of match they would see now. After all, it wasn’t often that two of the Great Doujutsu went head to head.

Sasuke Uchiha vs. Hinata Hyuuga

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know this battle seemed short. To be honest, it wasn’t easy to write the battle with how little we know of Omoi’s skills from this point in time. Add in that most of Temari’s skills were showcased AFTER the Chunin Exams, we have little to base her style around too. And noting that she’s holding back so she can showcase more later, means it’s hard to write an exciting battle.
> 
> Next time will be better.


	32. Battle of the Doujutsu

The audience watched with anticipation as the combatants entered the arena and bets rapidly changed hands as the Shinobi placed their wagers on which of the two would end up on top.

“The first match of the Chunin Exam Semi-Finals,” said Hayate, “Hyuuga Hinata vs Uchiha Sasuke, BEGIN!”

Sasuke and Hinata quickly activated their Doujutsu and jumped apart from each other, weaving several hand seals.

“ _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ ” yelled Sasuke as he shot out a blast of fire from his mouth, but his opponent and teammate was more than ready.

“ _Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu!_ ” yelled Hinata as she spat out a torrent of water that kicked up a large steam cloud as it impacted Sasuke’s fire.

The Hyuuga heiress took full advantage of the cloud and rushed forward as it enveloped the both of them, relying on her Byakugan to make her way through the cloud as she struck with several Juken blows.  Hinata landed several solid blows, but suddenly, she noticed a surge of chakra from within Sasuke’s body and she jumped back just in tome to avoid getting caught in an explosion as ‘Sasuke’ detonated, the force from the blast clearing the steam cloud.

“Bunshin Daibakuha?” said Hinata in surprise before rolling to the side to avoid a slash from Sasuke as he jumped at her.

Making several hand-seals, Sasuke generated lightning from his hands and launched it at his Hyuuga teammate, engulfing her body which transformed into a log with a poof of smoke.  His reflexes then screamed at him and he rolled to the side to avoid a blast of air from one of Hinata’s Juken techniques, before turning to face her, his Sharingan blazing in his eyes.

Drawing his sword, Sasuke quickly parried several kunai that Hinata had thrown at him with pin point accuracy before creating two Kage Bunshin and having them attack from the left and right while he attacked from above.  The three of them prepared to deal powerful sword strikes to Hinata, which would likely decide the match.

“ _Mikazuki no Mai!_ ” yelled Sasuke as he leapt at Hinata with his sword at the ready.

Hinata thought quickly as she saw the Uchiha close in and recalled a technique she had been developing through training with her father.  Quickly channeling Futon chakra from her palms to create thin blades of chakra from the palms of her hands, before using her flexibility to swing her arms around and create a dome of cutting blades around her, “ _Shugohakke Rokujūyon Shō!_ ”

Sasuke and his Kage Bunshin slammed into the wall of blades, the original being sent flying back while his Kage Bunshin were quickly dispelled, leaving the crowd stammering in shock about what they saw.

xXsceneXx

“That technique,” said Guy as he turned to a member of the audience behind him, “it’s yours, right Uzuki-san?”

“I may have taught him a few things,” said the off-duty ANBU, “it was a request from a friend.  Though what surprised me was the Hyuga’s technique.  That didn’t look like any Juken technique I’ve seen.”

“That’s because it’s not,” said a voice, causing the gathered Jonin to turn and see Hyuuga Hiashi taking a seat near them, “forgive me, but dealing with the Elders’ banter can get tiresome and I wanted to enjoy this match.”

“Not a problem at all, Hyuuga-sama,” said Kakashi respectfully, “but what did you mean when you said that that technique was not a Juken technique.”

“Well,” said Hiashi, “in some regards, you could say it isn’t, for it was created by Hinata herself as an answer to her difficulty using the Kaiten.  By taking advantage of her natural flexibility and Futon chakra, she surrounds herself with a wall of blades that can block most attacks, and due to her Byakugan, there is no opening in the wall for her enemies to exploit.”

“So, she created it herself?” asked Asuma with an impressed tone.

“Indeed,” said the Hyuuga Clan Head, “the traditional Juken techniques have proven to be too rigid for her to properly master, so she developed her own style.  I see great potential in her.”

xXsceneXx

Sasuke pulled himself to his feet with a groan and wondered how he’d get past Hinata’s new perfect defense technique.  Deciding to test it out, Sasuke made several hand-seals and spat fireballs at the Hyuuga girl, watching as they were snuffed out by the dome of blades.  Nodding to himself, Sasuke made several more hand-seals and slammed his hand into the ground.

“ _Doton: Tsuchi Nami no Jutsu!_ ” said Sasuke, causing the ground to shift and undulate like waves on the coast, knocking Hinata off her feet.

Sasuke took quick advantage of this and shot forward with his sword in his hand, aiming to get several good strikes in while Hinata was off balance, but the Hyuuga girl quickly regained herself and used her flowing variant of the Juken to dodge around the sword slashes and thrust her palm out, sending a vacuum shell into Sasuke’s chest that blasted him backwards.

“ _Hakke Kūshō!_ ” said Hinata as her attack sent Sasuke flying back.  Quickly making several more hand-seals, Hinata took a deep breath and breathed out a thick mist that obscured the battlefield, “ _Kirigakure no Jutsu._ ”

xXsceneXx

“Well that’s quite ingenious,” murmured Hiruzen as he watched the fight.

“Correct me if I’m wrong,” said A, “but that’s a Jutsu from Kiri, right?”

“Indeed,” said the Kazekage from his seat, “that’s their trademark.  How is it one of your Genin managed to acquire it, Sarutobi?”

“Her team had the misfortune of encountering Zabuza Momochi on a mission gone wrong,” said Hiruzen, “she likely picked up on the technique in the fight and refined it later on before the tournament.”

“Well,” said A, “it’s quite the answer to the boy’s Sharingan.  As you said, quite ingenuous.”

xXsceneXx

Sasuke cursed to himself as the thick mist obscured his vision.  He knew that he was at a severe disadvantage due to the lack of visibility only affecting him due to Hinata’s Byakugan being able to pierce the mist she created with her Chakra, and thus pushed his other senses to their limits.  It was because of this that he was able to pick up the sound of clothes rustling and the whoosh of metal streaking through the air, causing him to react on instinct and duck down, dodging a shuriken that would have hit him in the back of the head.  Unfortunately, his hairdo wasn’t so lucky and several locks fell to the ground.

“Shit,” said Sasuke as he raised a hand to his hair and sighed, but he didn’t have much time to bemoan that as Hinata was making her next move.

“ _Suiton: Suidan no Jutsu!_ ” shouted Hinata’s voice, knocking the Uchiha back as he was hit with a torrent of water that had been blasted from the Hyuga’s mouth.

“That’s it,” growled Sasuke as he made several hand seals, “ _Raiton: Jibashi!_ ”

Slamming his hands into the watery ground, Sasuke released a surge of electricity that traveled through the water that was permeating the ground, shocking both him and Hinata off their feet, causing the mist to dissipate as its creator lost focus on maintaining it.  Having prepared himself for the blast, Sasuke was the first to pull himself to his feet and he drew several Shuriken that he threw through the air at Hinata.

As she composed herself from being mildly electrocuted, Hinata was forced to call upon all of her flexibility and reflexes to twist and dodge out of the way of the incoming weapons before she was able to put up her perfect defense technique and cut through the shuriken with her chakra blades.

Seeing this happen, Sasuke knew he had to end the match before it was turned into a battle of attrition, and since he had already expended a good amount of Chakra here, that was something he had to avoid.

Making several hand seals, Sasuke leapt free of the water and gripped his right forearm as his right hand was pointed below him in an open claw.  Focusing his chakra, Sasuke channeled his Raiton Affinity and focused the energy outwards from his palm, causing lightning to visibly arc around his open hand as a sound akin to the chirping of a thousand birds could be heard.

xXsceneXx

“Kakashi,” said Guy in shock, “you didn’t…”

“I don’t think you’re in much of a position to judge Guy,” said Kakashi casually, “you taught your student to use the Eight Gates, a technique that can prove as lethal as it is powerful, so why can’t I teach my own student a technique of my own?”

“I don’t understand,” said Sakura from where she sat next to Kurenai and the other Konoha Shinobi, “what kid of technique is that?”

“It’s an A-Rank Jutsu of Kakashi’s own design,” said Guy, “a technique so powerful that he was able to use it to split a bolt of lightning, earning it the name Raikiri, but its original name comes from the sound of birds that the lightning emits…”

xXsceneXx

Sasuke shot at Hinata at incredible speed, relying on his Sharingan to see properly, lightning trailing behind him from his attack tearing a trench in the battlefield as he ran.  Seeing the destructive potential of the attack, Hinata quickly put up her defensive barrier technique to hopefully deflect the incoming blade of lightning.

“ _CHIDORI!_ ” yelled Sasuke as he slammed his lightning covered hand into Hinata’s wall of blades.

The two techniques, one defensive, and the other purely offensive, battled for dominance as their users pushed harder and harder to gain the upper hand.  Eventually the collision of the two attacks exploded violently, sending Sasuke tumbling across the ground while Hinata slammed into the arena wall and fell to the ground unconscious.

Seeing that Sasuke was pulling himself to his feet, Hayate Gekko leapt down and raised his hand, “The winner of the match and moving to the Finals, Sasuke Uchiha!”

 


	33. Battle of the Demons

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A lot of you are saying that the Chidori shouldn’t have lost to a wind-release barrier, so let me explain. The Chidori is an A-Ranked Raiton Ninjutsu, while the barrier Hinata used is an INOMPLETE Futon Taijutsu. Now, normally that wouldn’t matter all that much, but in reality, here, the Chidori didn’t win. The two Jutsu canceled each other out when the opposing techniques exploded violently due to the power being pushed into them, resulting in Hinata’s loss when she was knocked out by hitting her head against the wall. Should she have been further away, the battle would have continued. Luck was a factor here.

As Hinata was carried off to be treated, Sasuke left the field, allowing Hayate to call the next two combatants.

“The semifinals second match,” said Hayate, “will Temari and Naruto enter the field.”

“I forfeit!” called out Temari.  She knew she had no chance against Naruto’s Rinnegan or against the various Ninjutsu he displayed in his previous matches.  Besides, the invasion was still ahead and she needed to conserve her strength.

“Very well,” said Hayate, “then we shall proceed with the Final match of the Chunin Exams.  Will Naruto and Sasuke Uchiha enter the arena.”

The two brothers jumped down into the battlefield and faced each other with determined expressions.  Both knew the other wanted them to not hold anything back.  It was time to see who was stronger between them.

“This will be your last chance to show everyone here what you two have to offer as Shinobi,” said Hayate as he reached into a pocket and pulled out two pills, “and therefore, you both will be given Soldier Pills to replenish your Stamina and Chakra, so you can fight at your best.”

Taking the pills with a nod, the two brothers swallowed them and felt their strength and Chakra return to them.  Taking their positions in the arena, the two Shinobi of Konoha waited for the match to begin.

“The final match of the Chunin Exams,” called out Hayate, “begins NOW!”

“Naruto,” said Sasuke before the former could attack, “how’s about we really show them our skills?”

“What did you have in mind, Nii-san?” asked Naruto with a grin.

Sasuke smirked before raising his voice and addressing the crowd, “Many of you have seen him as a Demon or a monster, but Naruto is my brother in all but blood.  If you think he’s a monster, then I am one too, and today we’ll show you what happens when two monsters clash!”

Sasuke closed his eyes and black designs spread across his skin from the Cursed Seal on his neck, causing his body to undergo a transformation.  The teen’s hair grew longer and wilder as his skin turned grey and his sclera became black and a black mark resembling a cross appeared on his forehead.  Finally, two wings sprouted from his back that resembled large, grey, webbed hands.

Naruto smirked as the audience erupted with murmured conversation about their precious Uchiha becoming some sort of demon and closed his eyes.

“I get the message, Nii-san,” said Naruto, “ _Oi Kyuubi!_ ”

“ **I guess I can get behind this plan,** ” said the Kyuubi, “ **kick his ass.** ”

Naruto focused and felt the fox’s chakra flood through him, forming an aura around his body that resembled a humanoid fox with a single tail, while his physical features became more savage an animalistic.

“You ready?” asked Naruto.

“Been ready for years,” said Sasuke before making several hand-seals, “ _Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu!_ ”

“ _Suiton: Mizurappa!_ ” yelled Naruto upon going through hand-seals of his own.

Sasuke breathed out a stream of flames while Naruto spat out a stream of water that countered the fire Jutsu.  Naruto then made a cross hand-seal that caused Sasuke’s eyes to widen.

“ _Tajū Kage Bunshin no Jutsu!_ ” yelled Naruto, creating three dozen Kage Bunshin that proceeded to attack Sasuke.

Sasuke quickly drew his sword and began to slice through the clones, carving through them with quick ease thanks to his Sharingan and the training he received from Kakashi and Yugao.  Once the clones were dispatched, Sasuke looked around for the original, but didn’t see him anywhere.  Suddenly, two hands emerged from the ground and grabbed his ankles before pulling the Uchiha down into the ground until only his head remained aboveground.

“ _Doton: Shinjū Zanshu no Jutsu!_ ” yelled Naruto as he emerged from the dirt, “What now Nii-san?”

Sasuke struggled for a but before hos body vanished in a poof of smoke, before Naruto was knocked into the air as Sasuke appeared from the ground as well with a rising kick.  The elder brother then leapt after Naruto, using the wings on his back to fly after the blond, before kicking him in quick succession, sending the teen slamming into the ground as Sasuke slammed his elbow into the blond’s midsection.  Luckily, the Chakra cloak surrounding the Jinchūriki allowed for some protection and kept the match from ending right there, and the next thing Sasuke knew was that he had been thrown away from his opponent by an arm made of Chakra that had extended from the cloak.

“You’ll have to do better than that,” said Naruto with a smirk as he spat out some blood as his Jinchūriki status began to heal him.

“I intend to,” said Sasuke as he made several hand-seals.

Naruto smiled ferally and made hand-seals of his own and together, the two brothers shouted out their Jutsu.

“ _Katon: Gōryūka no Jutsu!_ ”

“ _Doton: Doryūheki!_ ”

A dragon head made of flames collided with a large wall of stone that rose up out of the ground, emblazoned with the Uchiha crest with a spiral centered on it.

xXsceneXx

“I was unaware that Konoha had two Jinchūriki,” said A as he watched the fight.

“We don’t,” said Hiruzen, “there was an…incident with a despicable nuke-nin during the Second Exam.  The result of the incident left Sasuke with a peculiar affliction, but once properly treated, it has proven to be quite the benefit.”

“I can see that,” said A, “the boy can match skills with a Jinchūriki that seems to have some level of control over his Biju.  Someone with that level of latent power hasn’t been seen by Kumo since Kisame Hoshigaki.  Perhaps that nuke-nin did something right?”

“Perhaps,” said Hiruzen, “but it obviously was unintentional.  He has always been known to disregard the consequences of his actions.”

The Kazekage listened to this conversation and he couldn’t quite suppress a twitch that developed in his eye as he listened to the other two Kage speak of this nuke-nin and the match.  The Hokage noticed the Kazekage’s interest in their discussion and turned to address him.

“Is there something wrong, Kazekage-dono?” asked Hiruzen politely with a smile on his face.

“No,” said the Kazekage, “I was just interested in your opinion of the two Genin’s abilities.  They seem rather advanced for Shinobi their age.”

“While it _is_ uncommon for Shinobi to gain such skill at their age, it is certainly not unheard of,” said Hiruzen, “Sharingan no Kakashi and Itachi Uchiha were both quite gifted in their youth, and I seem to recall several missions where a certain rapping Jinchūriki from Kumo dealt with many opponents while still being rather young.”

“Indeed,” said A as the Jinchūriki being referred to was his brother, “youth doesn’t necessarily determine skill in our world.  Your own son was one of the combatants in this tournament and he had already made a name for himself while being not much older than the boys fighting now.”

“True,” admitted the Kazekage, “perhaps then we should pay closer attention to the match?  These two are likely to surprise us even further.”

xXsceneXx

“ _Raiton: Jibashi!_ ” yelled Sasuke as he released a stream of lightning that tore through the rock wall before biting his finger to draw blood and spreading it over the flat of his sword, causing the blade to be covered in lightning.  Spreading his wings, Sasuke flew at Naruto, aiming to slice through him with the sword in his hand.

Naruto didn’t let him.  Quickly breathing out Futon chakra onto a Kunai, Naruto created a scimitar-like weapon that he used to block his brother’s strike.  Again and again the two brothers clashed blades, but it was obvious that Sasuke had the better training and said Shinobi broke their stalemate when he delivered a kick that sent Naruto tumbling back.

Stabbing his sword into the ground, Sasuke made a hand-seal and took a deep breath and breathed out a torrent of fire, “ _Katon: Karyūdan!_ ”

Rolling to his feet, Naruto quickly made several hand seals and spat out a mass amount of water that formed into a dragon that shot forward and swallowed the flames, causing the water to explode into steam and mist.  Naruto then made several hand seals and blew out several blasts of Futon Chakra that dispelled the steam and mist and streaked toward the air in Sasuke’s direction.

“ _Futon: Shinkūgyoku!_ ” yelled Naruto.

The blasts of air forced Sasuke to dodge, but he was unable to avoid them all and the Futon Chakra left several cuts on his body.  Spreading his wings, Sasuke rose into the air and hovered as drew several shuriken before letting them fly at Naruto with great accuracy.  Naruto created his Vacuum blade again and quickly cut through the spinning blades thanks to the sharp edge of his Futon Chakra blade.

“ _Katon,_ ” said Sasuke as he made several hand seals in midair, “ _Hōsenka no Jutsu!_ ”

Naruto’s eyes widened and he was forced to dodge and roll out of the way as Sasuke sent dozens of small fireballs flying at the blond Jinchūriki, but several of the erratically flying flames struck his Chakra cloak and exploded against it, sending the Jinchūriki tumbling across the dirt.

“Damnit,” said Naruto as he pulled himself to his feet, “try this on for size, _Raiton: Shichū Shibari!_ ”

Four pillars of stone rose up around the edges of the arena and generated a field of lightning within their enclosed space, the largeness of the area leaving Sasuke no space to run.  The Uchiha cried out in pain and was held off the ground by the energy for a moment before falling to the ground as the pillars retracted.

“Ready to give up?” asked Naruto.

“Hardly,” said Sasuke as he got to his feet, “how about we finish this?  Your best against my best?”

“Sounds like you’re ready to lose,” said Naruto.

“Hardly,” said Sasuke, “I’m going to demolish you.  Right here.  Right now.”

Sasuke spread his wings and flew backwards to the opposite end of the stadium and held his hand below him in a familiar stance.  Seeing this, Naruto smirked and jumped back, landing at the end opposite from Sasuke while holding his hand to his side with his palm facing up. 

The crowd watched as Sasuke gathered Chakra in his hand in the form of black lightning that resembled a dark Chidori, yet instead of chirping, the sound of a thousand flapping wings could be heard.  Turning to Naruto, they would see blue Chakra, tinted purple by the crimson Chakra Cloak that shrouded his form, forming a spherical shape in his hand.  The two Genin then rushed at each other at blinding speeds, closing the distance between the two of them in seconds before slamming the Jutsu in their hands together with violent results.

“ _CHIDORI!_ ”

“ _RASENGAN!_ ”

At the moment of impact, a shock wave of Chakra was released, causing a crater to form under the epicenter of the clash.  The shockwave shook the stadium and kicked up a powerful blast of wind as the Chakra released by the two battling Shinobi tore gashes in the battlefield as their highly destructive Jutsu battled for dominance.  Curse Mark and Biju Chakra fought violently, sending out waves of chaotic destructive energy that exploded across the ground and caused those sitting in the front row to shield themselves to avoid injury from flying rubble.  Eventually, the two clashing Jutsu exploded in a violent manner that kicked up a cloud of dust and released a shockwave that knocked everyone, even the assembled Kage, out of their seats due to the force behind it.

When the dust cleared, everyone looked intently to the arena, eager to see what the result of such a titanic clash of power was, and they were not disappointed.

The entire battlefield had been reduced to a large crater with the bodies of the two brothers lying on the ground in the center, the two of them back in their normal forms.  The damage to the battlefield was so intense that there were even cracks on the base of the arena walls near to the ground from the power of the shockwave.  Hayate quickly jumped down and checked on the two Genin, seeing that they both were conscious, but too exhausted to continue fighting.

“Since both combatants are unable to continue, I declare the final match of the Chunin Exams to be a draw!” called out Hayate.

The crowd began to cheer as the excitement of the intense battle kicked in, but just as the applause grew to a roar, several white feathers appeared in the air, causing all those untrained with Genjutsu to fall unconscious.  It was at that time, the Oto and Suna Shinobi leapt to their feet and attacked the people around them, only to be countered by several dozen ANBU and Jonin-level Shinobi that were strategically placed among the crowd.

The invasion of Konoha had begun.


	34. The Invasion Begins

As A watched the Oto and Suna Shinobi leap up and attack the Konoha civilians, his face morphed into one of anger.

“What is the meaning of this?” he growled as he turned towards the Kazekage and Hiruzen.

“I’m afraid I wasn’t completely forthcoming,” said Hiruzen as he threw off his robes to reveal an armored battle outfit, “you see, that _thing_ in front of you, is not the Kazekage.”

“What?” exclaimed the Raikage.

“Well now,” said the Kazekage in a sinister voice, “it seems I underestimated your intelligence network…sensei.”

The man removed the robes and veil he was wearing, revealing a familiar pale face wearing grey robes with a purple rope serving as a belt.

“Orochimaru,” growled A as he recognized the Sannin from the Bingo Books, “so this attack is your doing.”

“You could say that,” said Orochimaru with a smirk, “now, how about joining me, Raikage?  Get some vengeance against Konoha for all they’ve done against your village.”

“You want me to side with you against Konoha?” asked A before he blurred into motion and plunged a Raiton Chakra coated hand through the Sannin’s heart, “I would rather die than side with a man who has committed as many atrocities as you have.”

The Sannin twitched for a second as his heart was crushed, but then his mouth opened unnaturally wide and a second, completely uninjured Orochimaru climbed out and flipped away to make some distance.

“I see,” said Orochimaru, “so that is your response.”

The Snake Sannin snapped his fingers and the Kazekage entourage transformed into four Oto Shinobi with poofs of smoke. They quickly vanished in a blur of Shunshin with Orochimaru, causing the Kage to follow them until they reached the roof of the Kage building.  Once there, they leapt to the four corners and slammed their hands into the ground.

“ _Shinshiejin!_ ” they yelled, causing four walls of purple flames to form that barricaded off the Kage and Orochimaru from the other fighters.

“Now then,” said the Sannin as he made several hand-seals, “this seems quite unfair, so let me even things out a bit.  _Kuchiyose: Edo Tensei!_ ”

Two stone coffins rose from the ground and opened up, allowing two men wearing Konoha headbands and old shinobi armor colored red and blue to step out.  Orochimaru quickly stabbed kunai with a sealing tag into the backs of the shinobi and their eyes went blank.

“That’s…” said A in surprise.

“The Shodai and Nidaime Hokage,” muttered Hiruzen, “Orochimaru, how far have you fallen to use that Jutsu.”

“I have surpassed all that have come before me,” said Orochimaru as he drew a sword from his maw and held it ready, “this will be the day you die, sensei.”

“Raikage-sama,” said Hiruzen, “if you could deal with my predecessors, then I will deal with my wayward student. _Kuchiyose no Jutsu!_ ”

A poof of smoke exploded and when it cleared, a humanoid simian figure was standing there.

“So, it’s Orochimaru, Sarutobi?” said the figure, “Are you finally dealing with him?”

“Yes,” said Hiruzen, “today will be the final battle Enma.”

“Fine,” said Enma, “let’s end this. _Henge: Kongōnyoi!_ ”

The simian transformed into a large metal staff that Hiruzen caught in his arms, “Shall we, Raikage-sama?”

“I suppose I must,” said A as he shrouded his body in Raiton Chakra, “and it’s not every day that you get to fight Hashirama and Tobirama Senju, two of Konoha’s most prominent Kage.”

“Let’s begin then,” said Orochimaru and the combatants raced at each other.

xXsceneXx

While this was happening, Naruto and Sasuke were lying in the arena, still spent from their battle as the fighting happened around them.  All the Shinobi attending were too busy dealing with the enemy Shinobi to be able to help them.  Well, all but one.

“Naruto-kun!” exclaimed Hinata as she leapt down next to them.  Her injuries from the previous match were minor and easily dealt with, so she had been able to attend the finals.

“Hinata-chan,” said Naruto, “we need your help.”

Focusing the last of his Chakra, Naruto activated his Rinnegan and called upon the King of Hell, “Carry us into its mouth.  Quickly.”

Hinata nodded and hauled her two teammates through the purple flames and into the maw of the King of Hell.  Once inside, she could feel her injuries quickly disappearing due to the energies in the maw and she could feel Naruto and Sasuke straightening up as they regained their strength.  Soon the mouth opened again and the completely revitalized Team 7 stepped out.

“Right,” said Naruto, “now to help with the invasion.”

“I’m afraid I cannot allow that,” said a voice behind Naruto, causing the blond to spin around before getting kicked across the ground via a foot to the midsection.

Team 7 regrouped and faced a young man with white hair, pale skin, and green eyes, wearing grey robes with a purple rope-belt indicating his allegiance to Oto.

“What do you want teme?” growled Naruto.

“My name is Kimimaro,” said the man, “Orochimaru-sama has sent me to bring the three of you to him…by whatever means necessary.”

“In your dreams!” yelled Naruto as he aimed a kick at the man, but, to the blond’s surprise, several bone spikes emerged from his skin and pierced through the leg, holding it in place away from his body.”

“I’m afraid you don’t have a choice,” said Kimimaro coldly as Naruto cried out in pain, before kicking the boy to the ground, causing the spike to be ripped out of his leg.

“Naruto-kun,” cried out Hinata.

“Don’t worry,” said Naruto, “I’ll be fine.”

“ **I’m going to give you enough for a two tailed cloak,** ” said the Kyuubi, “ **you’ll likely need it against this guy.** ”

Red chakra surrounded Naruto, causing his wound to close up as he stood and was surrounded in an aura resembling a two-tailed fox.  Getting the message, Sasuke activated his Cursed Seal and was transformed as well, while Hinata activated her Byakugan and got into a Juken stance.

“So, you intend to resist,” said Kimimaro as he slipped off the top part of his robes, exposing his toned torso, “ _Yanagi no Mae._ ”

Blades made of bone sprouted from Kimimaro’s shoulders, palms, elbows, and knees and he got into a crouched stance.  Naruto quickly made a hand seal and summoned several Kage Bunshin, all covered in a Chakra Cloak, to attack the Oto-nin, but Kimimaro moved quickly and gracefully like a willow in the breeze, simultaneously dodging attacks and dispelling the Kage Bunshin with ease before rushing at the original.  The only thing that kept Naruto from being cut to ribbons was the protection the cloak of Kyuubi Chakra gave him…that and the fact that he wouldn’t get dispelled from a single kick.

Sasuke then attacked as Naruto was knocked to the ground, biting his finger and swiping the blood on Kyuketsuki’s flat edge, causing the blade to be covered in lightning as he attacked Kimimaro with great speed, but the Oto Shinobi took advantage of the strength of his bones and their non-conductive nature to dodge or deflect all of Sasuke’s attacks while landing some slashes on him as well.

“ _Hakke Kūshō!_ ” yelled Hinata as she thrust her palm forward, sending a vacuum shell out that slammed into Kimimaro, sending him skidding back.

“Nice Hinata-chan!” said Naruto as he made several hand seals, “ _Suiton: Suiryūdan no Jutsu!_ ”

Naruto spat out a dragon of water that streaked towards Kimimaro and sent him flying into the arena wall, but when the dust cleared, the Oto-Shinobi cracked his neck and regarded them with an emotionless look.

“You three are stronger than I had anticipated,” said the Oto-shinobi as he reached for his back, “it seems I will have to try a bit harder.  _Tessenka no Mai: Tsuru!_ ”

The three Genin watched with shock and awe as their opponent reached behind him and proceeded to pull out his own spinal column and wield it like a spiny whip.  Kimimaro quickly lashed out with his new weapon, coiling it around Naruto’s ankle before giving a swift pull, yanking the blond off his feet and flinging him at his friends.

Team Seven quickly jumped back up and went on the defensive, dodging swings from this new weapon thanks to their training and the enhanced sight their Doujutsu gave them as they tried to find an opening in this deadly dance.

xXsceneXx

“ _Raitoningu Sutorēto!_ ”

The Raikage shot forward at blinding speed, thanks to the power of his Raiton Chakra Mode, and delivered a powerful punch aimed at the reanimated corpse of the Nidaime Hokage, but when he made contact, the corpse shattered into ashes and quickly put itself back together due to the nature of the Jutsu giving it false life.

“Che,” muttered the Raikage, “fighting these puppets is getting tiresome.”

“ _Mokuton Hijutsu: Jukai Kōtan!_ ” yelled the Shodai Hokage as he clasped his hands together causing a forest of trees to sprout forth in the enclosed battle area.

A took full advantage of his enhanced speed to leap from branch to branch in order to avoid being caught in the growing forest, before aiming a powerful axe kick at Hashirama.

“ _Girochin Doroppu!_ ”

The Shodai Hokage glanced up with his empty gaze and made several hand-seals before clasping his hands together once more, “ _Mokuton: Mokuryū no Jutsu!_ ”

The reanimated Hokage created a serpentine wooden dragon that intercepted the Raikage’s attack, shattering into splinters as a result, but it was still able to deflect the kick and send the Raikage tumbling across the ground.  While this had been happening, Tobirama had finished regenerating his body and made several hand-seals of his own.

“ _Suiton: Suidanha!_ ” yelled the Nidaime Hokage before spitting out a stream of water that sliced through several tree trunks as it streaked toward A.

The stream of water slammed into the Raikage and sent him flying back through several trees, his Raiton Chakra Armor being the only thing keeping him from being sliced in two.

“Tch,” muttered A as he wiped some blood from his mouth, “this is going to be harder than I thought.  To be expected I guess.”

Meanwhile, Hiruzen was fighting his former student in a violent exchange of blows.  Hiruzen attacked viciously with his diamond-hard staff, with the Snake Sannin using his sword to quickly parry the blows until he was able to disarm the Hokage with a quick strike, sending the staff flying into the air.  Hiruzen wasn’t phased though and quickly made a Kage Bunshin n that made several hand-seals as the original leapt into the air after his staff.

“ _Katon: Karyū Endan!_ ” yelled the Kage Bunshin as it breathed out a dragon of fire that streaked towards Orochimaru, forcing the Sannin to make several hand-seals of his own.

“ _Kuchiyose,_ ” said Orochiaru as he slammed his hands onto the roof in front of him, “ _Rashōmon!_ ”

An iron gate bearing the visage of a scowling Oni rose from the ground and blocked the fire dragon, causing the torrent of flames to stream past the barrier, flowing around the gates and leaving the Sannin unharmed as the gate receded into the ground.  Hiruzen used his Kage Bunshin’s attack as a diversion and grabbed his staff out of the air and thrust it at his student, causing the staff to extend and slam into Orochimaru’s chest, shattering his ribs.

To a normal person, this kind of injury would be quite debilitating and potentially fatal, but the Snake Sannin dealt with it by ejecting a new, healthy, body from the mouth of the old one.

“You cannot win, old man,” laughed the Sannin, “for unlike you, I have traveled far along the road toward true immortality, while you remain old and frail.  Your time has ended.”

“We shall see,” said Hiruzen, “I may not survive this fight, but I will ensure the safety of this village and those who inhabit it with my last breath.”

Hiruzen and his Kage Bunshin blurred through several hand-seals before both taking a deep breath.

“ _Katon: Karyū Endan!_ ”

“ _Fūton: Shinkūha!_ ”

Hiruzen breathed out a dragon of fire while his Kage Bunshin released a storm of wind that picked up the flames and turned it into a devastating firestorm that engulfed Orochimaru and burned away several of the trees that had grown on the roof.


	35. Konoha Stands

 

Hiruzen watched as the flames that had engulfed his former student faded away, leaving only some burnt ashes, and it was only his decades of training and experience that kept him from getting impaled from behind by Orochimaru’s sword.  As the blade passed by his head, Hiruzen aimed the back of his staff so that it would be pointed directly at the Sannin’s chest and caused it to extend backwards, smashing into his ribcage and sending him flying across the roof.  As the Sandaime turned, he saw his firmer student emerge from the mouth of his previously broken body, unharmed as usual…but something was different.

“I see now,” said Hiruzen, “that technique isn’t as foolproof as I thought.”

“I don’t believe I follow,” said Orochimaru, “perhaps you’re getting senile, old man.”

The Hokage shook his head, “No, these eyes, while old, are still sharp enough to spot the signs of Chakra Exhaustion.  Ragged breath, bulging veins near your tenketsu, bloodshot eyes, tightness in your skin.  You use that technique to escape from injury like a snake shedding skin, but it must take its toll on you.”

Hiruzen smirked and raised his Adamantine staff into a fighting stance, “So now this becomes a battle of attrition.  Will you be able to defeat me, or will I force you to exhaust your Chakra before that happens?”

The Sannin growled and raised the Sword of Kusanagi he held in his hand, “I will enjoy ending you, old man.”

“We shall see about that,” said Hiruzen before the two combatants blurred into motion, their weapons locking together with a resounding crash.

xXsceneXx

The members of Team Seven were breathing hard with several cuts across their bodies and tears in their outfits as they faced their opponent, who still had a calm expression despite the situation.  The Oto Shinobi regarded them with an unimpressed look as he shrugged off the torn upper section of his outfit, revealing a toned torso with a few shallow cuts due to the attacks that got through his defenses.

“You three are unimpressive,” said Kimimaro as he let his spine-whip rest at his side, “though I am surprised you have lasted so long.”

“Teme,” spat Naruto as he pulled himself to his feet, “ _Kage Bunshin no Jutsu_ ”

“I suppose I should end this and deliver you to Orochimaru-sama,” said Kimimaro as he snapped his spine whip and easily cut through the onslaught of clones that Naruto sent at him, “I’ll make it quick.”

Kimimaro lashed out with the whip, sending it swinging at Hinata’s neck, and he would have taken her head off if Naruto hadn’t leapt into the way and used his arm to block, relying on his Chakra Cloak to protect him from the bone whip’s sharp edges.  Undeterred, Kimimaro gave the whip a tug, pulling the Jinchūriki off his feet as he created a bone sword and raised it to block a blow from Sasuke’s Kyuketsuki.  Swinging his foot out, Kimimaro caused several bone spikes to sprout from his leg, allowing the Oto Shinobi to impale the Uchiha with a kick, only for his opponent to be revealed to be a Kage Bunshin when he went up in a poof of smoke.

His danger senses triggering, Kimimaro flipped himself into the air, allowing him to dodge a torrent of flames that Naruto and Sasuke had spat at him from two separate directions.  Landing, he fired off projectiles in the form of his finger-bones, that knocked Naruto back, and left Sasuke with several cuts on his body.

“ _Suiton,_ ” said Hinata as she made several hand-seals, “ _Mizurappa!_ ”

“ _Raiton,_ ” said Naruto as he quickly recovered and moved to assist, “ _Jibashi!_ ”

The wave of water and lightning shot at Kimimaro, but the Shinobi’s expression did not change as he expertly dodged out of the way, but this time, Hinata was ready for him as he touched down again.

“ _Hakke Sanjūni Shō!_ ” yelled Hinata as she charged at Kimimaro landing spot, chakra coating her hands as she prepared to strike.

The Oto Shinobi instinctively twisted in the air and moved back to create distance once he touched down, knowing that the technique she was using had the potential to bypass his natural defenses, but as Hinata moved in, her teammates were not idle.

“ _Doton: Doryūheki!_ ” yelled Naruto as he created a curved wall of stone that sprouted from the ground and boxed Kimimaro in, with Sasuke following up by throwing several Raiton infused kunai that pinned the Shinobi to the wall, holding him in place.

Hinata slammed several palm strikes into Kimimaro’s body, sealing off several of the Shinobi’s Tenketsu before he was able to break free and kick the girl away.  The bone user staggered slightly as he felt his Chakra flow being partially inhibited by the sealed Tenketsu, and for the first time, an annoyed frown appeared on Kimimaro’s face as he regarded the three Genin.

“…it seems you three are more of a nuisance than I initially believed,” said Kimimaro as he flexed his hand, feeling the stiffness in his body, “perhaps I should start actually trying.”

The Genin of Team 7 watched as black marks spread across Kimimaro’s body, similar to what happened when Sasuke activated his Cursed Seal, and before their eyes, their enemy underwent a transformation. Kimimaro’s skin turned dark greyish-brown with black marks around his eyes, his hair darkened to a dark grey color, six bone spikes emerged from his back, and a tail formed at the base of his spine with bone ridges on it.

Feeling his master’s Chakra flowing through his body, compensating for the disruption in the natural flow that Hinata’s attack had caused, Kimimaro cracked his neck and regarded the three Genin.

“I will deliver your broken bodies to Orochimaru-sama,” said Kimimaro as he readied his bone whip and sword, “you will not win.”

Kimimaro moved forward, slower this time due to his altered body, swinging his bone whip at the Genin, with Naruto using his Chakra cloak to block it from hitting his teammates again, but this time was different.  This time, when Kimimaro yanked Naruto toward him, the blond delivered a powerful punch to the side of Kimimaro’s face, causing his head to snap to the side.  Naruto was then sent flying into the far wall of the arena by a kick from Kimimaro, the Shinobi taking advantage of the advanced strength that his Cursed Seal of Earth to send the blond flying, and it was only his Chakra Cloak that kept Naruto from having his ribs caved in.

Sasuke then took the initiative and attacked with the lightning covered edge of Kyuketsuki, slashing at Kimimaro’s body, taking advantage of his superior speed to break through Kimimaro’s guard and deliver several slashes to his torso, but they were only superficial as he was not able to cut through Kimimaro’s extra dense bones.  Kimimaro knocked him aside and then began to sprout bones from his left arm that twisted together until they formed into a drill-like shape.

“ _Tessenka no Mai: Hana!_ ” said Kimimaro as he raised his new weapon.

Sasuke quickly prepared himself, readying his blade as Kimimaro swung his whip at him.  The transformed Oto-nin swung his whip, causing it to extend and wrap around Sasuke’s body, holding him in place as Kimimaro rushed forward with his bone-drill and thrust it forward, impaling the Uchiha, taking care to avoid any critical organs so that his master would still be able to take advantage of the Uchiha’s body.  Though as it turned out, he needn’t have worried, as Sasuke’s body was replaced with a now broken rock.

Sasuke then appeared out of his blind spot, having substituted himself with a piece of rubble, with a Chidori enveloping his hand.  Sasuke thrust his lightning coated hand forward, causing Kimimaro to bring his bone-drill up to block.  The Raiton technique fought against the density of Kimimaro’s technique, even causing some cracks to form on the super-hard bones around the point of impact, but ultimately, Kimimaro’s technique held firm and he knocked the Uchiha aside.  Hinata then sprung forward, having recovered from being kicked aside, and slammed several Juken strikes into Kimimaro’s improvised shield, but her attacks were unable to do any lasting damage either.

“Any thoughts?” asked Naruto as he ran up.

“We’ll need to break through his defenses,” said Sasuke, “otherwise we’ll never win.  That drill of his is, my Chidori barely scratched it.”

“I have an idea,” said Naruto, “all of our bests at once.  Hinata-chan, drive him back.  Nii-san, let’s go.”

Hinata nodded and rushed forward, slamming powerful Juken strikes into the Oto Shinobi’s defense, forcing him to step back due to the force, while Naruto and Sasuke charged up their Rasengan and Chidori respectively, their techniques being colored by the forms they were in.  When Kimimaro found his back touching the rock wall that Naruto had erected, Hinata jumped away, allowing the two brothers to rush forward with their attacks.  Kimimaro responded by thrusting forward his bone weapon as the brothers slammed their two attacks into it, the two destructive attacks holding the point of the drill back.

The bone weapon fought against the destructive power of the two Jutsu and cracks began to form across the surface of the weapon, the penetrating Raiton Chakra and the raw strength of the spiraling sphere were overpowering the dense chakra created calcium construct.  Together, the two brothers thrust their Jutsu forward, causing the bone-drill to explode apart, knocking all of them to the ground and disrupting their Jutsu in the process.

“You broke it,” said Kimimaro as he pulled himself to his feet, “nobody has ever managed that before.  I see I will have to stop holding back.  A pity, you probably won’t survive.”

Kimimaro clasped his hands together and began to channel his chakra, “ _Sawarabi…_ ”

Suddenly, as he was about to enact his Jutsu, Kimimaro’s body seized up and he began to vomit blood as he fell to his knees.

“No,” he gasped, “forgive me, Orochimaru-sama.  I have failed.”

As the three Genin of Team 7 watched their opponent’s life fade away in confusion, a shadowy figure watched from a secluded location.

“It seems my experimental medication wasn’t enough for Kimimaro to complete his mission,” said a grey-haired teen as he adjusted his glasses and removed a Konoha hitai-ate, replacing it with one bearing the Oto crest, “a pity.  He could have been quite useful in future projects.”

The shinobi, known as Kabuto Yakushi, Orochimaru’s right hand man and spy in Konoha, vanished in a blur of Shunshin.

xXsceneXx

Meanwhile, the Yondaime Raikage grimaced as he took full advantage of the speed granted to him by his Raiton Chakra Mode to avoid being slammed by a pillar of wood and to dodge a dragon made of water that tried to eat him.  As he smashed a tree branch that had tried to impale him with a punch, he noted that there was a reason that these two Kage, dead or not, were so known for their skill during their age.  And it wasn’t just their power, the two Senju brothers fought together well, even with Orochimaru’s Jutsu robbing them of their free will.

It didn’t help that the two former Kage kept regenerating whenever he took them down, thought A ruefully as he smashed his fist through the Shodai and watched as the undead Hokage’s body pulled itself back together, as if to reinforce his point.

“This could get tedious,” muttered A as he snapped out a kick at such a speed that it released a shockwave of wind that flew at the two resurrected Kage and bisected them along with several of the chakra enhanced trees.

“ _Mokuton,_ ” said Hashirama as he went through several hand seals as his body re-formed, “ _Mokuryū no Jutsu!_ ”

The Shodai Hokage created a serpentine dragon of wood that streaked across the rooftop battleground and bore down on the Yondaime Raikage.  A growled, knowing that he couldn’t just keep dodging, or this would become a battle of attrition that he could not win, and flashed toward the dragon, slamming his fist into the wooden beast’s head, causing it to explode into splinters.

“Might want to hurry up Sarutobi!” he yelled toward the Hokage as he used his speed to destroy the two former Hokage yet again.

As the Raikage fought the reincarnated Kage, Hiruzen continued to trade blows with his former student.  The two high level shinobi clashed with their weapons, launching powerful Jutsu at each other that blasted craters into the battlefield as their conflict went on.

“You’re tiring old man,” said Orochimaru as Hiruzen blocked a slash from the Sannin’s Sword of Kusanagi with his Adamantine staff.

“I could say the same to you,” quipped Hiruzen as he almost caved in the Sannin’s ribcage when said Shinobi barely dodged a strike from the Kage’s staff when it quickly extended in length, “you had so much potential Orochimaru, and you waste it all with your actions now.”

“I’ll have you know,” said Orochimaru as he jumped back, “that I have taken more steps to achieving my potential than any have in existence!”

“You have taken steps yes,” said Hiruzen, “but with your deeds, they are only steps backwards.”

“I will show you just how far I’ve come from those days as your hopeful little student,” growled the Snake Sannin.

“We shall see,” said Hiruzen as he blurred through several hand-seals, “ _Kawara Shuriken!_ ”

Several dozen tiles lifted off the rooftop and began to spin, before shooting at the Snake Sannin like improvised shuriken.  Orochimaru quickly readied his sword and slashed through each of them as they neared his person, before making several quick hand-seals.

“ _Futon: Daitoppa!_ ” yelled Orochimaru, releasing a blast of wind that forced Hiruzen to use chakra to stick to the roof to avoid getting blown into the barrier around them.

Taking advantage of his opponent being on the defensive due to his attack, Orochimaru rushed forward and swung his sword, severing the arm Hiruzen wasn’t using to hold his staff, knocking his former sensei to the ground and pointing his blade at his face.

“You’re finished, sensei,” said Orochimaru as he raised his blade, “your time has ended.”

Suddenly, the roof of the Hokage building exploded, disrupting the Shinobi that were maintaining the barrier and sending the combatants into a free fall.  Capitalizing on his former student being caught off guard, Hiruzen caused five flames to appear on his fingers and thrust his clawed hand into the Sannin’s stomach, causing a five-pronged sealing array to form, blocking off the Sannin’s chakra flow.  Out of the smoke Jiraiya and two Kage Bunshin appeared and rushed forward.  His Bunshin quickly made seals and slapped tags on the two resurrected Kage that caused Fuinjutsu arrays to form over their bodies to petrify them, while the original caught his sensei as he fell.

“Jiraiya,” growled Orochimaru, “damn you!”

Before the Sannin could say any more, he was interrupted by an electrified blur that slammed a kick into his stomach, sending him flying into the ground as he vomited blood from internal injuries.  The Raikage, having been freed up from fighting the Shodai and Nidaime, landed in a crouch and spat a bit of blood out from a good hit that had managed to get through.

“I always hated snakes,” said A as the Snake Sannin’s forces regrouped around him and helped their master up.

“We’re leaving,” commanded a redheaded Oto Kunoichi before making several hand seals and releasing a Genjutsu that lasted long enough for them to make their escape.

“Sensei,” said Jiraiya as he performed emergency first-aid to stop the old man’s bleeding.

“The village is safe,” said Hiruzen, but as he looked over the widespread damage from the battle between the three forces, he sighed, “but at what cost?”

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, one thing before we finish this arc: if you thought Kimimaro was too easy an opponent than he was in canon, I have an explanation.  He is, at least, a Jonin level shinobi from a clan that is known for their warriors, that has one of the two strongest versions of Orochimaru’s Cursed Marks.  He felt that three Genin were of no threat, and, aided in the fact that he meant to take them alive, didn’t go all out.  In canon, he slaughtered anyone who opposed him in the Shinobi war, so why would he go all out against three Genin that, to his knowledge, were still wet behind the ears.  In fact, the only reason they won, was because their teamwork coupled with their unique abilities allowed them to survive long enough for Kimimaro’s disease to kill him instead.  In fact, he was about to wipe the floor with them in ONE MOVE when it kicked in.  He just chose that time to take them seriously.


	36. Promoting Change

The invasion of Konoha was over.  The Oto and Suna Shinobi had been repelled and the village continued to stand resilient…but the true damage was not to the buildings or the streets.  Even with the extra security precautions that Hiruzen had put in place before and after learning of the invasion plan, the village had suffered both Civilian and Shinobi casualties thanks to the attacking enemy Shinobi.  To top it off, the Hokage himself was in critical condition in the Konoha Hospital due to the injuries he received fighting his former student.  Luckily the building had been protected from the battle by several layers of Fuinjutsu arrays that had been put up by the Shodai Hokage and added to and improved on by the Nidaime, the Sandaime, the Sannin Jiraiya, and the Yondaime.  The collective belief was that, the Hospital was the one building they could not afford to lose in an attack.

It was in that building that we would find Jiraiya, visiting the Sandaime as he weakly rested in a room, recovering from Chakra exhaustion and the injuries Orochimaru inflicted on him.

“Sensei,” said the Toad Sage as he kneeled by his former teacher’s bedside, “I’m sorry, I should have stopped Orochimaru earlier.”

“Do not grieve,” said Hiruzen, “this old man has many years left in him.  You are not to blame for my former student’s choices.  If you had not intervened when you did, I’m afraid we would not be having this conversation.  Do not focus on what could have been.  We need to start planning for the future, and with the injuries I have received, I won’t be able to continue for much longer.”

“Sensei,” said Jiraiya worriedly, “don’t say things like that!  You have many more years left in you.”

“Do not fret,” chuckled Hiruzen weakly, “I was not referring to my demise.  I simply meant, it’s time for me to retire, permanently.”

“Sensei, you know my position on succeeding you,” sighed Jiraiya.

“I know,” said Hiruzen seriously, “and there is a solution.  I have someone else in mind to take my hat in the long term.  Jiraiya, I’ll need you to go out on a mission.  It’s time Tsunade returns to her home.”

“You know she won’t willingly come back,” said Jiraiya, “not after all that she’s been through.”

Hiruzen nodded, “I simply need you to deliver a message…”

xXsceneXx

Two days later, the Konoha Genin that had participated in the Chunin Exam’s tournament phase were summoned to the Hokage’s office to hear whom among them had been selected to advance to the rank of Chunin.  When they entered the office, they found the Sandaime waiting for them, his lost arm at the hands of Orochimaru apparent by the sleeve of his robes that hung at his side, empty.

“Everyone,” said Hiruzen as he faced the group from behind his desk, “first of all, I would like to express my pride in all of you.  From the reports of the Shinobi in the field, your actions during the invasion were exactly what we expect of Shinobi of Konoha, and while those actions will nod lead to a Chunin promotion by themselves, they have been factored into our final decision along with your performance in the Exam itself.  Now, I’m sure many of you are waiting to find out who among you has earned a promotion, so I shall continue.  Akimichi Choji.”

The heavyset teen, for once without his customary bag of chips, stepped forward and stood at attention in front of the Hokage.

“I’m sorry,” said Hiruzen causing the boy to wilt, “while you performed adequately during the invasion, your performance in the actual Exams wasn’t enough to warrant a promotion.”

As the teen took his spot back in line, Hiruzen checked the scroll on his desk again, “Hyuuga Hinata.”

The shy girl eeped and took a step forward.  The Hokage regarded her for a moment before smiling with a nod, “Your skill with your Clan Techniques was exemplary and your actions with your team during the invasion, taking on a high-level Shinobi sent after your group showed me that you are truly ready for this promotion.  Congratulations.”

Hinata’s eyes went wide and she gave a stiff bow before moving back in line, shocked and astounded that she had earned her promotion on her first go.  Once she was back in place, Hiruzen called the next person on his list, “Hyuuga Neji.”

The elder Hyuuga Clan member stepped forward to stand in front of the Hokage as Hiruzen read over the reports, “While your performance was exemplary, your tendency to let your emotions cloud your thinking detracted from the points in your favor,” said Sarutobi firmly, “a Chunin must be able to keep a clear head no matter the situation and no matter his or her opponent.  However, Hiashi has spoken up on your behalf in regards to the sheer talent and skill you possess, as made evident in your ability to reverse engineer several of the Main Branch techniques.  Therefore, you shall be promoted, but placed under a probationary period to see if you truly possess the mindset needed to be a Chunin.”

Neji nodded in agreement and stepped back into line as the Hokage called Rock Lee forward, the green clad Genin standing straight, obviously working to contain all the energy he usually had.  The Sandaime regarded the energetic teen before frowning, “While it is clear you have extraordinary strength thanks to your skill with Taijutsu and your ability to use the Eight Gates shows this, however that is not all there is to being a Chunin.  A Chunin must be able to think clearly and act beyond charging headlong into danger wielding nothing but your fists.  As shown in your match, you were quickly caught off guard by your opponent’s Genjutsu, leaving you defenseless.  I’m afraid that, until you overcome this weakness, and I am sure you will eventually, I cannot condone promoting you to Chunin.”

Lee stepped back into line with a disheartened look, prompting Hiruzen to call the next applicant forward, “Masamune Tenten, step forward.”

The weapon mistress took a step forward to stand before the Hokage, wondering what the village leader would have to say about her.

Hiruzen nodded, “You have shown an excellent skill with the various weapons you wield and an uncanny aptitude for Fuinjutsu as shown by the scrolls you used for your final technique.  Your sensei has also expressed how you continue to grow and learn despite being from a Civilian background and having the added responsibility of running one of the village’s most important Shinobi Tool shops.  I am happy to say that you have earned your promotion.”

Tenten bowed happily before taking her spot back in line, prompting Sarutobi to call Shikamaru forward, “Shikamaru Nara,” said the Hokage, “you’re lazy.  As a Chunin, you will not have that luxury.  In the field and in command, you will need to and be expected to give your all in service to the village.  If this was all, I would not condone a promotion, but your Sensei has spoken up in regards to your vast intelligence and tactical mind, a sentiment that your father echoes.  Therefore, you, like Neji, will be given a probationary promotion to Chunin.  I expect you to shape up within that period, you WILL be reduced in rank and disciplined accordingly.  That is all.”

The Nara heir gave a stiff nod, acknowledging his dressing down, and stepped back into line, allowing Sarutobi to move onto the two victors of the Exam Tournament, “Uchiha Sasuke, and Uchiha Naruto.”

The two brothers stepped forward, prompting the Hokage to give them an approving nod, “The two of you have shown remarkable skill in the Exams, the fact that you both tied as the victors shows this.  Sasuke, your skill with your Sharingan and Kenjutsu was complimented by your ability to control the power that your Cursed Seal grants you.  You also showed great aptitude for Katon and Raiton Jutsu, having even learned Kakashi’s Chidori technique, allowing me to approve your promotion to Chunin.”

Turning to Naruto, the Sandaime regarded the son of his late predecessor, “Naruto, you have grown so much from your days in the academy.  You’ve shown skill in all five elements, with enough aptitude for Suiton Jutsu to use them without a prior water source, a high-level technique.  You have also shown aptitude for the Yondaime’s Rasengan technique and, coupled with your Doujutsu, this makes you a formidable opponent.  As stated earlier, this is not all we look for in Chunin level Shinobi, but your sensei has spoken of your ability to quickly learn through actions and interactions, despite a difficulty in scholastic environments.  Your mastery of the Taju Kage Bunshin Kinjutsu adds to my decision that you be promoted to Chunin.”

Regarding the gathered Genin, Hiruzen let a smile form on his face, “To all that have been promoted, congratulations, but remember that there is always steps ahead to reach for and room to grow.  To those that have not, you must continue to work and strive to be as great as you can be, you all have the potential to be great Shinobi.  You are all dismissed.  Expect to receive your Flak Jackets by the end of the week.”

The gathered Shinobi left and, once they were gone, Jiraiya stepped into the room, “I’ve looked over your proposal sensei, are you sure Tsunade will agree to it?”

“She will,” said the Sandaime, “I have given her much leeway in her grief, but it is time that she return home once more.  In the wake of this invasion, we need her services more than ever.”

“I will set out immediately,” said Jiraiya, “but I would like to also invite Naruto to join me.  I intend to use the trip to further train him on utilizing the Kyuubi’s Chakra and to tell him of his parents.”

“I agree that this will be a good opportunity,” said Hiruzen, “his parents also left some letters for him to read upon his promotion.”

“I’ll see that he gets them,” said Jiraiya before he made his exit out the window.

xXsceneXx

“I’d like to say that I am extremely proud of the three of you,” said Kakashi, his single visible eye glowing with pride.  The group had met up in front of the Konoha Memorial Stone after the announcement of their promotions, where Kakashi had said he had some gifts to congratulate their promotion from Genin, “it is customary for Genin to receive a gift from their sensei upon their promotion to Chunin. The Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka families usually receive an earring from their sensei as is custom for their clans, and I have items for the three of you.”

Pulling out a scroll, Kakashi unfurled it to reveal three Fuinjutsu Storage Seals.  Placing his hand on one, Kakashi unsealed a set of wristbands that he passed to Hinata, “These bands have been engraved with storage seals that can hold Kunai and Shuriken, allowing you to take full advantage of your marksmanship without having to fish for a weapon.”

Hinata took the bands and placed them on her wrists, feeling how they fit her perfectly.  Moving on, Kakashi placed his hand on the second array and unsealed a sheathed tanto.  Drawing the blade, he revealed that it was made of a black metallic alloy, “This blade is made from a metal that is highly conductive of Chakra,” he said as he passed the weapon to Naruto, “it will compliment your skill with Futon Chakra if you use them in conjunction.”

Naruto smiled and placed the sheathe on his back so it was held perpendicular to his body, allowing Kakashi to unseal the final item: a large scroll, “Sasuke, I would like to offer you the chance to sign the Dog Summoning Contract, as I believe their tracking skill will compliment your Sharingan quite well.”

Sasuke grinned as he stepped forward and bit his thumb to sign his name in blood.  Once he was done, Kakashi smiled at his students with pride.  They had come such a long way, and he believed that they would one day become Shinobi that could rival ones with renown such like the Sannin if they worked hard enough.  They had become his pride, and his legacy.


	37. Familial Revelations

“Why exactly are we going on this mission again, Jiraiya-sensei?” groaned Naruto as he and the Toad Sannin walked through the forest, headed to a nearby town where Jiraiya hoped to find a trace of his old teammate, Tsunade Senju.

“It’s for the Hokage,” said Jiraiya, “Tsunade is the best medic around and she should be able to help him recover from his injuries, as well as treat some of the other people injured in Orochimaru’s attack.”

“I know that much,” said Naruto, “I meant why do _I_ have to be on this mission?”

“Well,” said Jiraiya casually, “I _assumed_ you’d like to use the time to learn more about using the Kyuubi’s Chakra, along with some other super awesome Jutsu I _could_ teach you, but if you’d rather head back to the village…”

“When can we start dattebayo?” exclaimed Naruto excitedly, causing Jiraiya to chuckle.

“Well,” said the Sannin, “we’ve managed to cover a good amount of ground so far, so perhaps we can take a break.  There should be a clearing ahead that we can use.”

“Awesome!” cheered Naruto, “Let’s go!”

The Sannin chuckled at the enthusiasm of his student as they continued on their way at a quicker pace, now that said student was properly motivated.  He had spoken with Kakashi before they left Konoha in order to confirm that the Jonin would be giving the Dog contract to ONLY Sasuke.  He wasn’t trying to imply that Kakashi should focus on the Uchiha, it was just that he wanted to pass on something that had belonged to Naruto’s parents, and signing the Dog summoning contract would prove a bit counterproductive.

His student’s good cheer seemed contagious, and he decided to hasten his pace as well, after all, the odds were pretty good that Tsunade would come back with them.  The Sandaime had left him with a message to deliver after all, and his sensei had assured him that it would ensure her return to them, though he hadn’t been able to read it himself due to it being locked with a blood seal.

But hey, what’s the worst that could happen?

xXsceneXx

A ways away, in a small but bustling town, a blond woman with an impressive bust was staring down at a wooden tile in her hand with an expression that was a mix of shock, joy, and horror.  She had entered the town on her wanderings and had heard that the town was holding their annual lottery that week and, as per her reputation as a gambler, had paid several hundred Ryo to the pot so she could get in on the game.  It didn’t hurt that the past three years had gone without a winner being declared and thus the prize money had been accumulating for four years and the payout was bigger than ever.  On the tile in her hand was a set of numbers and symbols, but they weren’t just any random combination.  The tile that she had drawn, was the winning combination for the lottery.

“Congratulations Ma’am,” said the announcer with glee, “you’ve won our 1,000,000,000 ryo jackpot!  As the first winner in three years, may I have a photo to post on the wall of fame?”

“Shizune,” said Tsunade, ignoring the man in front of her, “gather up the prize money.  We’re leaving.”

“Tsunade-sama, why?” asked a black-haired woman as she ran up in a black yukata carrying a small pig.

“Don’t ask questions,” said Tsunade, “just get the money and pack up our things.  We’re leaving.  We should be able to make it to Tanzaku in a few days if we hurry.”

Shizune was confused at her teacher’s actions, but she quickly gathered up the prize money from the Jackpot and hurried to their hotel room to gather their bags.  After all, if her sensei decided they needed to get going on the double, then there must be a good reason, right?  While she did this, Tsunade looked out at the sky with a troubled look on her face.  Remembering each of the previous times she had been this successful through her gambling, she felt a looming sense of dread as she prayed that she would not have to watch anyone die this time.

“Tsunade-sama,” said Shizune after a moment, snapping the Sannin out of her musings and making her realize that she had been standing there for a while, “I’ve packed everything and we’re ready to head out.  Are you certain we can’t stay any longer?  Maybe we could contact some of the people you…”

“Shizune,” said Tsunade firmly, “we are leaving.  If we have the chance, we can contact them at the next town we reach.”

“Hai, Tsunade-sama,” sighed Shizune as the two women plus one pig headed out of the town.

As they left, a man wearing a black cloak with bandages covering his face and a hitai-ate that bore an Oto-nin crest emerged from the shadows of an alley.  Once the two women were out of sight, he ducked back into the alley and rolled up a sleeve, revealing several tattoos.  The man made three hand-seals and traced the outline of a swallowtail tattoo on his arm before closing his eyes.

“ _Ninpō: Juinjutsu Shisha!_ ” said the man, causing the tattoo to rise up off his arm and fly off into the distance, seeking the one its master sent it to find.  Once the butterfly tattoo was out of sight, the Shinobi made a ram seal and vanished using a Shunshin.

xXsceneXx

“Alright sensei,” said Naruto as the two of them sat on rocks that were positioned around a makeshift firepit, “what are we going to learn first?”

“Actually,” said Jiraiya, “before we get on to the things I wanted to teach you, there is something I want to give to you.  You see, there’s another reason I wanted to be your sensei.  Not only was my own sensei the Sandaime, but one of the Genin I led as a Jonin sensei, was your father.”

“You knew my father?” said Naruto in surprise.

“And your mother,” nodded Jiraiya, “in fact, you were named after the main character of my first novel, though that book didn’t really sell very well, and your parents named me your godfather.”

“You’re…my godfather?” asked Naruto softly.

“I know I was not around as much as I should have been,” sighed Jiraiya, “but I had a duty to maintain Konoha’s spy network.  I still tried to keep tabs on…”

Before Jiraiya could finish, he was interrupted by Naruto rushing forward to hug him around the midsection.  The Sannin was surprised, but placed his hand on the teen’s back reassuringly.

“It’s alright,” said Naruto, “I have family again.  That’s all that matters.”

The blond pulled away with a smile on his face, prompting Jiraiya to pull out a scroll that was sealed shut, “This was left to you by your parents,” said the Sannin, “it was blood sealed, so even I don’t know what it says.”

“Why haven’t I gotten this before now?” asked Naruto curiously as he took the scroll and looked it over.

“You have to understand,” said Jiraiya, “your parents were powerful shinobi and earned their reputations during a time of war, so of course they gained many enemies from other villages, enemies that wouldn’t hesitate to hunt down and kill their only child as a form of retribution for losses suffered in the war.  Their wish was that you wouldn’t receive this until you reached the rank of Chunin and were strong enough to make your own decisions and to defend yourself.”

Naruto nodded and bit his thumb to draw blood before swiping his blood across the seal on the scroll, causing it to release, allowing the blond Jinchuriki to open the scroll and read his parents’ last message to him.

_Dear Naruto,_

_If you are reading this, then something must have happened to us and we are gone.  I want you to know that you are, and always have been, the light of our lives, and that we both wish that we could be here saying these things, instead of relying on a letter to convey our regrets.  Since it was our wish that you not read this until you reached the rank of Chunin, I guess I should say congratulations.  And if you passed on your first try, then you really take after your old man._

_Anyways, you will grow up to be a fine young man, I’m sure of it, after all, your parents turned out all right, and let’s hope you didn’t inherit your mother’s temper~~~~_

The ink smeared at this point.  It seemed that his father had been whacked over the head when his mother saw that last remark.

            _Ahaha, right.  I guess what I want to say, is that I want you to live a happy and full life.  Remember that your parents loved you and always look out for those you hold close.  Keep the Will of Fire burning strong, and I hope we don’t see you until you’re an old man with grandchildren._

_Be happy._

_Minato Namikaze.  Yondaime Hokage._

Naruto’s eyes widened as he finished reading the letter.  His father was the legendary Yellow Flash of Konoha, the Yondaime.  He quickly found his mother’s message to him and began to read, wanting to know more about his family.

_My dear Sochi,_

_I am so sorry I couldn’t be there for you.  I wanted to see you grow up and start a family of your own, but it seems that it was not to be.  I guess you’re wondering a few things about your Kaa-san, so let me tell you about myself.  I came to the village as a child from our clan’s home in Uzu, where I met your father when I enrolled in the Shinobi academy.  I came to the village because I had been selected to become the second Jinchuriki to the Kyuubi no Kitsune, as the first, Mito Uzumaki, the wife of the Shodai Hokage, was nearing the end of her long life.  After graduating, I earned a reputation early on due to my hot temper and my round face and red hair earning me a teasing nickname of tomato.  After beating up the fifteenth set of bullies (do not follow my example, you hear me) I earned a new nickname, “the Red-Hot Habanero.”_

_The day I found out I was pregnant with you was the happiest of my life and it is my deepest regret that I am telling you this through a letter rather than to your face.  I would hope you live a good and long life.  Eat right, find happiness, and watch out for Jiraiya-sensei._

_With all my love,_

_Kushina Uzumaki._

“My father was the Yondaime,” said Naruto happily, “but if he was my father, why did he or my mother allow the Kyuubi to be sealed into me?”

“It is because it could be nobody else,” said Jiraiya, “your father could never ask of someone else something that he could not do himself.  He could never force someone to sacrifice their own child if he could not do so himself.  Minato-kun believed that you would have the strength to handle this burden, and I am pleased to say you have surpassed all my expectations.”

“Thanks sensei,” said Naruto, “now what are we going to train with first?”

“Always so single minded,” chuckled Jiraiya, “well I did have something special planned.  I’m going to teach you a technique that has been passed down from me to your father and now to you: I’m going to teach you to summon toads.”

 


End file.
